


Rhodopis in Remnant

by 0neWhoWanders



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:46:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 36
Words: 64,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25728397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/0neWhoWanders/pseuds/0neWhoWanders
Summary: A dream is a wish your heart makes. Ruby Rose's one dream had always been to live a life of happiness. When the option of a perfect family was taken from her, all that remained was her passion. Her one passion for building the weapons of hunstmen. Even with an evil landlord keeping her from her dreams, she will learn that all it takes is a little love to reach happily ever after.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long, Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee
Comments: 17
Kudos: 135





	1. Ruby Rose; or the Little Iron Trigger

Once there was a gentleman who married, for his second wife, the nicest and most beautiful woman that was ever seen. He had, by a former wife, one daughter to call his own. A beautiful girl with hair as yellow as the sun’s rays with a personality to match. He and his new wife loved each other and their daughter, but soon felt as if something were missing from their family. That something, they soon discovered, was a new child. A little sister for their little dragon. Someone whose little wisps of baby hair would give her, her very own name. A ruby as lovely as a rose. A girl of unparalleled goodness and sweetness of temper, which she took from her mother, who was the best creature in the world.

For a time, a gentleman, his beautiful wife and their two daughters; a fiery ray of sunshine and a delicately sweet rose, were as happy as any family could be. Together, they moved from the city; a great metropolis of people of all kinds, to a small village on an island known as Patch. A place, one could quickly gather, where one would raise a family. Patch was not somewhere one could easily point out on a map, as its size is not something that gave the residents pride. Patch however, was known for its sweet summers and mild winters. Its beautiful falls and calm springs. In all, it was a place where one need not fear for adventurous children, as the gentlemen’s daughters no doubt were.

The beautiful wife cared for her two daughters equally, as they were both her own, no matter whom had given birth to them. She was a spirited woman who was renowned for her work in the kitchen as a baker of cookies, as well as her work as an officer upholding the law. A famed woman who spent many a night and day scouring the countryside for bandits and thieves and all those whom go bump in the night.

The gentleman left his life as a huntsman, choosing to give up the adventuring for a new one. He became a teacher at a school. A school which taught all that a young boy or girl would need to become a huntsman or any of the many positions needed to help these brave soldiers of the law.

For a time, the gentleman taught, the wife adventured and baked. The blonde played in the streams and forests around their tiny home. And the rose watched them all with wide silver eyes, jumping in her crib and waiting for the moment she was able to break free and run to her little heart’s content.

They were happy for a time. The perfect family known all around the little island of Patch. Two beautiful daughters whom loved each other more than life itself and loved their parents almost as much, just as a family should be. The seasons turned and the sun rose from the hills and set over the ocean. The family continued their daily routines, and all were happy.

The youngest learned to walk. Almost immediately, she learned to run. She smiled and laughed and danced and sang. But most of all, she ran. The little rose ran to the streams and through the forests with her sister. She ran around the kitchen as her mother baked her cookies and fed her strawberries. She ran to the school where her father taught, becoming a welcome and common sight for student and teacher alike. The little rose was happy and filled with childlike imagination and wonder. The gentleman and his wife hoped that she would never lose that spark in her wide silver eyes. The sparkle that filled her with glee whenever she learned something new, or ran somewhere for the first time, or whenever she saw her sister.

And so, the seasons changed, and the months continued. The family grew a garden outside their tiny home. Strawberries for their youngest and mint for their eldest. Their home changed landlords. All was good and peaceful for the happy little family on the little island of Patch.

The beautiful wife left on a regular, calm night. Gave a loving kiss to her husband, the gentleman, a kiss to her eldest daughter, the fiery blonde, and a big hug and kiss for her youngest, the joyful rose. And then she set out to work another day.

And then she never came home.

The family was heartbroken. The gentleman in tears. The youngest, who laughed and played and ran, did so less. But, even with all she knew and all she learnt everyday, was still too young to understand what had happened. She asked her big sister, the kindest and friendliest person that the little rose knew, why did mother not return? The eldest, as heartbroken as she was, was still the eldest. Her father was broken, but she could not be. And so she was not. Left to take care of her father and youngest sister.

And the days turned to weeks and the weeks to months. The months went by and things started to return to normal. As normal as things could be, for a perfect family whom had lost one of their perfect members. The father returned from his stupor and then returned to work as a teacher. The eldest baked cookies and went to school, deciding that she wanted to follow in her mother’s footsteps. And the youngest played and laughed and learned all she could.

And the seasons changed and the smaller family was happy for a time. The youngest daughter became as intelligent as she was joyful. For her seventh birthday, her father and sister gifted her a small work shed outside and away from their tiny house and next to their garden to use as she saw fit. The little girl loved her work shed and spent many a night sleeping at her table as she did her bed. She was happy and the spark never left her eyes. And so, her elder sister was happy. And so, their father was happy.

The summer turned to fall, and the first hints of snow fell onto the tiny island of Patch. And the near perfect family was happy. The father taught and the blonde studied, and the rose learned all she could. It was a peaceful life, and none would change it for anything. They would venture every year out of their village, across a single stream and through a bright forest to the edge of a cliff, overlooking the sparkling blue and green of the ocean. Atop the cliff, just steps from the long shadows of the tall trees was a small stone and plaque, commemorating the woman, that beautiful wife whom had made their family as perfect as it once was. Even without her physical present, none thought that they could lose her from their hearts.

The months passed and things stayed as they always did. A normalcy that one would always wish for, but with enough variation and adventure to keep a fiery blonde and excitable rose content. Their home changed landlords. All was right with the world on their little island known as Patch which they called home.

One kind winter’s day, as normal as any other, the gentleman, that father whom had raised two beautiful daughters, developed a cough. For many a night, he thought nothing of it. A cough in winter was nothing out of the ordinary and so he was content to believe it as such. But as the days turned to weeks and the weeks to months, the cough remained. And the cough grew worse. The gentleman, as strong as he was kind, grew weaker. His eyes which shared a fiery nature with his eldest and the spark of his youngest, lost their shine, becoming sunken pits. His tall frame became frail and weak. His adventurous attitude gave way to one of quiet melancholy as days as well as nights were spent in bed. In bed with nothing to keep him company, save for his beautiful daughters and his never-ending cough.

And the days turned to weeks and the two daughters were nervous for their father, that kind gentleman. Still they learned all they could and made their father the proudest a father could be. The eldest, the blonde whom had lived through the death of her mother, continued to take care of her only sister. She was her parent as much as she was her best friend. And the youngest, now old enough to understand, could only think about what would soon come to pass. But still she remained calm and kind and joyful. Her eyes kept their spark, even as their father grew weaker. She would remain strong, if not for herself, then for her elder sister. Just as her elder sister would remain strong for her.

And the hours passed. So too did their father. The gentleman whom had started their perfect family went into the black night with but a whisper of love for his two girls and his beautiful wife. Tears were shed and words were said. The quiet nights continued. And the tiny house changed landlords. All was as normal as it could be without a husband and wife; father and mother.

The days turned to weeks. The weeks to months and the months to years. The fiery blonde grew into a beautiful woman and the delicate rose into an exuberant girl. The blonde studied and worked and the rose learned all she could, spending many an hour in her work shed.

It was as normal as it could be. For what remained of such a perfect family, was still perfect in the eyes of the two daughters. The two sisters whom looked so different, yet were so similar. The days turned and the seasons changed. And they continued to do what they loved, living in their tiny home on the little island that was known as Patch.


	2. Once Upon a Time

Yang let out a huff of accomplishment. Her hands rested on her hips, one hand grasping a hammer and the other a rag wet with her sweat. She stared out at her hard work. The front of her house was once again fixed. No longer would the yellow boards which framed the windows fall or loosen when it rained or snowed. It was an incredible feeling to see the fruits of her many hours of labour. Not that anyone else would notice.

Especially not one short sister of hers, whose short red hair was so dark that is looked black at the roots. No, her sister Ruby was still in her work shed. Like always. Not that Yang truly minded how her sister spent her free time. She was proud of the girl. Only fifteen and already applying to universities. Just like she was. The only difference between the two of them, was that Ruby had already been receiving offers while she was receiving a fat load of nothing. There was still time though. And she was not one to be jealous of the accomplishments of her prodigy of a sister.

It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining with only a small foggy cloud in the sky. The birds were chirping merrily and the hum of a drill or saw could be heard from Ruby’s shed. In all, it was normal. Wiping a thin line of sweat from her forehead with her rag, she dropped her tools on the porch, picking up her glass of water in its place. It was nice to have a day off of work. They were on course to pay this month’s rent as well as have some extra money to save for school. Maybe even an extra box of cookies for Ruby.

“Yang!” The blonde turned, hearing her name called only to find a familiar smiling face walking towards her.

“Hey Pyrrha,” Yang waved in reply as Pyrrha opened up the little metal gate that separated their home from the public sidewalk.

“The place is looking good. Pathway could use a sweep or two.”

“I’ll give you the broom if you want,” Yang laughed in reply, giving her friend a hug. “Is Jaune not with you today?”

“Jaune’s managed to get himself a job interview.” Pyrrha shrugged, “took him long enough. But at least he’ll be doing something this year so he can afford college tuition.”

“Any idea where you’re heading?” By now, the topic of university had become a common one. One which most conversations lead to eventually. Neither expected that to change until they were actually in university and they both agreed that the next topic of choice would be who had the bigger course-load.

“My parents want me to go to Haven U, up in Mistral, just like the rest of them did. Apparently, Nikos’s are famous there.”

“Says the four-time track champion.” Yang nodded.

“Ya, but I don’t mean face in the Sunday paper famous. I mean like famous famous. Like ‘an entire gymnasium and library named after your family’ kind of famous.”

Yang let out a slow whistle of appreciation. What she would give for that kind of money. What she would give for even a percent of that kind of money.

“Dangit!” Came a high-pitched squeal from the work shed, followed by the clanging of tools and metal and most probably a little girl on top of everything. Yang winced hearing the clamour of sounds. Pyrrha could only laugh, holding a hand over her mouth to hide her grin.

Rolling her eyes, Yang turned towards Ruby. Disheveled and covered in oil lubricant, she stepped out of her shed, dragging something behind her. She was mumbling to herself about something to do with faulty gears and Yang telling her not to try top loading highly flammable explosives.

There was nothing Ruby had not tried to do in that shed; Ruby had often proudly claimed. That was, until Yang began giving her that knowing look she always hated, wagging her eyebrows. Of course, the only thoughts running through her big sister’s head was of a sexual nature. But aside from things of that nature, Ruby’s work shed had quickly become a hub for huntsman and huntresses as well as their in-training counterparts.

Even as a fifteen-year-old girl, if there was one thing Ruby knew, it was her way around a weapon. It was her way to help out what remained of their family, as well as finance her hobby when money was running low. As it often was.

“You doing alright Rubes?” Yang asked, trying to hold back her laughter at her sister’s choice of makeup. Even with her constant joking, she was concerned that Ruby was injured. Again. That girl was a klutz.

“Ya, ya. All fine. I’m trying to upgrade Crescent Rose.” Ruby shrugged, gesturing to the hunk of metal she was dragging behind her.

Crescent Rose was her baby. A weapon she had been building since she was seven and had all but mastered. Not that she truly cared about fighting. Not like Yang, who was going to become a huntress. No, Ruby wanted to continue doing what she was good at. She wanted to be a weapon smith. She wanted to design and build the weapons that her sister and people like her sister could use.

“I think Crescent Rose is missing her crescent,” Yang joked, pointing at the weapon which was now more a staff than a scythe. Ruby rolled her eyes, mimicking the blonde to a T.

“Pyrrha, can you tell Yang that I am upgrading my baby and that if she continues to make fun of her I will have no choice but to put Ember Celica back to the bottom of my to-do pile? And possibly also mix up the yellow paint with the pink paint?”

“Yang, Ruby says-”

“I think I got the gist of it, Pyr.” Yang waved off her friend. “Don’t you have a metal gun-shoe or something to fix? Crescent Rose can wait.”

Ruby smiled brightly. “Don’t worry ‘bout that. Mercury’s foot… boot... thing is done. Just letting the paint dry and glue harden overnight, and it’ll be good as new.   
Also, I find it funny watching him hop around on one foot.”

Her silver eyes sparkled with childlike delight. If Mercury was just a regular huntsman commissioning Ruby, Yang would joke along with her. Knowing that his boss was their landlord and could make their lives harder than they already were, the chuckles died quickly in her throat.

“Ms. Xiao Long!” Speak of the devil and she shall appear.

Waving goodbye to Pyrrha, she turned to the shorter raven-haired woman in a long red dress. Her orange eyes were like mini embers filled with nothing but spite. Like usual, she was followed by her two lackies. The grey haired Mercury who was hobbling along with the aid of a crutch and green haired Emerald, who stood to the right and back a step behind her boss and leader. Emerald carried Cinder Fall’s briefcase. No doubt filled with the countless schemes and tactics she would use to wring out as much money from her tenants as possible before she could ditch them for a new crop of paying renters.

Yang had seen it happen before to her neighbours. Ren and Nora were really nice people.

“Miss Fall, to what do I owe the pleasure?” The sarcasm was thick, even for her.

“We are here for this month’s rent.” Cinder’s mellifluous voice was filled with faux sweetness. Not that Emerald’s angry glare or Mercury’s satisfied smirk would make her seem any sweeter.

“Cindy, we had a deal already. Merc’s foot for a week extension on the rent. You’ll get your money next weekend like we’d planned.” Yang cocked an eyebrow.

“Unfortunately, my dear, that was only a favour between friends. If there was no contract written up or proof of said deal, it’s just your word against mine. And your rental contract says your rent is due today. If you don’t have it, I will gladly give you the week to vacate the premises, rent or no rent. Also, it’s Miss Fall to you.” 

Finishing her well-thought out argument, she gave a happy little sigh. Her pleasant smirk turned into a frown as she noticed the glint in the blonde’s lilac eye.

“Oh, miss Fall. I agree with you completely. It would have been oh so terrible that I didn’t have the money today nor proof of our deal. It is an amazing thing that little Ruby over here suggested recording our meeting. You know, you’re name. My name. Terms of the agreement, us shaking hands. The whole sheb-yang.”

“Did you just make a pun to the scary boss lady?” Ruby whispered to Yang from behind her sister’s skirt. Yang just patted her shoulder in response. “That isn’t a no…” Ruby muttered.

“Then, I would like to see proof of this recording. Just for documentation’s sake. I would hate to be unlawful.” Cinder mused, with a slight hitch in her voice.

Yang nodded happily, “of course! Hey Rubes, can you get the doohickey?”

“The what?”

“You know, the whose-it-ma-call-it from your shed.” Yang stared at Ruby until she nodded.

“Oh, right. Yes. Sure. Definitely will get you the… thing. One sec!” Dashing back to her shed, she left the two women glaring at each other.

A couple seconds later, Ruby was back, now with a small USB stick in her hand. Carefully, she handed it over to Cinder, who snatched it away the moment their hands met.

“I will be looking this over thoroughly. If it is not to my liking, I will be back.”

“See ya later! Don’t let the gate hit you on the way out.”

Cinder huffed, spinning on her heel, leaving in a much sourer mood than when she arrived. Yang waved her off until she disappeared from view, a stupidly smug smile plastered on her face.


	3. Princess Charming

For a girl who had everything, Weiss Schnee was an incredibly unhappy person. Daughter to Jacques Schnee, CEO of the Schnee Dust Company and currently the second wealthiest person in the world, as well as Willow Schnee, the Owner of the Schnee Dust Company, Schnee Cosmetics line as well as a hundred other pet projects and current wealthiest person in the world. Weiss was the heir to the Schnee company empire thanks to her sister’s choice to abandon the family name to pursue her military career. Not that it had affected the relationship between the sisters as much as it had their parents.

Weiss and Winter were still as close as ever, with their own very uniquely Schnee way of showing it. This included, of course, the bi-weekly scroll-call at precisely 4:30 every Tuesday and Friday. A date and time that could not be missed without exception. Topics varied with each conversation, but over the last few months, all calls seemed to trend to the same final conclusion. An unhappy Weiss and an exasperated Winter trying to calm down the tirades of a younger sibling.

“Mother is already choosing a dress. A dress, Winter! It’s white satin and laced with gold silk. Diamond speckled skirt, and who knows what other things.” Weiss complained.

“And?” Winter’s calm demeanor cut off her younger sister’s tirade.

“And I don’t even have a fiancé. Let alone a boyfriend or even someone I would consider spending longer than fifteen minutes with.”

“Weiss. Please remember that you’re a Schnee.”

Weiss sucked in a breath through her nose, held it for ten seconds and let it out slowly through her mouth.

“Thank you, sister. I don’t know what had come over me.”

“That is quite alright. Once more, I recommend you letting your feelings known to our parents. You might be the heiress, but you are also their daughter. I believe that they will take your thoughts into consideration into their plans.”

“Do you really believe that?”

“No, but I am glad to hear your calmed mannerisms improving.”

“Thank you. It seems like we are out of time. I love you.”

“And I you, dear sister. We shall speak again soon.”

Without another word, Winter clicked off her phone, leaving Weiss alone in her massive suite of a room. Placing her phone delicately on her night table, she flattened out her white dress removing any of the few wrinkles she could find.

Weiss’s room was fairly empty, considering she was a fabulously wealthy teenage girl. A large king-sized bed with white Egyptian cotton sheets, a long desk painted a silvery white and a night table, the same colour. A large window framed her room, bathing the white walls with a clean and friendly light. There were no pictures or paintings or posters. All her trophies or awards from fencing or singing were displayed proudly in the front of the house. Displayed so that every guest could see how perfectly brilliant the Schnee heiress is and bask in the glory that is the Schnee line.

The awards and trophies were not things that Weiss thought of as her own rewards for good work and years of training and practice. But, as little tokens for her parents. Fencing and singing were her passions because her mother and father made them her passions. A proper daughter was a skilled fencer, as fencing was a gentleman’s sport. If women in this day and age were made to exercise, then she would do so in a sport not surrounded by the lower class. With a voice like Weiss’s, there was no way she would not be singing in front of crowds of thousands by the time she could speak. All for the glory of the Schnee family.

Weiss stood gracefully from her bedside and walked slowly to her desk, making sure her feet glided over the ground, silent like any proper lady. Opening a drawer, she pulled out half painted sheet of canvas. Letting it unfurl, she held it up in front of the light of her window.

Reds, yellows and blues were thrown around the canvas, in a seemingly unorganized fashion. The colours spiralled around each other, barely touching or forming any noticeable picture. A few greens dotted the edges, with purple and grey making up a rounded border, somewhat resembling an oval. It was only when Weiss held the partially completed artwork at arm’s length could the true magic of the piece be revealed. Against the backdrop of natural light and the distance from her eyes, the colours and swirls and lines merged together, revealing a human form.

Dotted greens became coloured nails on the figure’s hands. The greys and purples outlining the painting’s face disclosed the delicate features of a young woman. It was a piece worthy of hanging in art museums, even in it’s unfinished state. Something that could have gone for millions with the right signature painted in the bottom right corner. But no, the painting was carefully refolded and placed back in it’s hiding spot in her drawer. Weiss always wanted to paint after speaking with her sister yet could very rarely muster up the motivation or the creativity needed.

With a sigh, she closed the door. She wanted to finish her portrait. A painting of some girl that appeared in her dreams night after night. She knew she had no recollection of ever meeting such a woman, but her mind was always pulled to her face, whenever she had a moment alone. An unknown person who filled her nights and days with thoughts and curiousity. The painting of what she could remember of her, changing almost daily as the image of her changed in her mind’s eye. Unfinished for the dual reasons of the young woman leaving her dreams were the painting to be completed.

And her parents.

If her mother, or god forbid her father found out that she could paint, her one relief from her duties as a Schnee would become another obligation.

A knock on her door tore her from her reverie. Ensuring the drawer was fully closed, she quickly returned to her bedside. Sitting quickly, she patted out wrinkles and placed her hands gently on her lap, fingers intertwined.

“You may enter.” She called out.

A soft click opened the door. “Ms. Schnee?”

“Yes Klein. Please, come in. Come in.”

Her servant-butler entered her room, slipping in through the small crack he had left. The balding old man with a thick moustache held his hands behind his back.   
“Ms. Schnee, your mother has requested your presence in the tea room.”

“Thank you Klein. Please let her know I will be right down.”

“Of course, Ms. Schnee.”

As Klein closed the door with a wink, Weiss let out a heavy breath. She closed her bright blue eyes, mustering up the courage to leave the safety and sanctity of her bedroom and face her parent. There was little doubt in her mind what the two would be discussing over a cup of tea and plate of biscuits.  
Weiss squeezed the bridge of her nose. Another conversation about the joys of raising children. Of continuing the Schnee family tree and bringing forth another successor. Of finding a good man; a wealthy man with good genes and a good family name to marry. It made no matter that Weiss had no interest in dating any of those mouth-breathing trust fund babies, let alone marrying them.

Not after her last round of dating. There was Russel Thrush, whom she poured a glass of wine down his shirt after attempting to steal a kiss from her at a spring gala, and then stepped on his foot with her thin heel, after he allowed his hands to drift further down than Weiss had allowed. That was a quick decision to remove him from the dating pool. And a devastating blow to the Thrush family, whom had hoped for a match with a Schnee to keep their failing company afloat, along with their failing lineage.

No way would a Schnee settle for someone like that. As she had told her mother, Weiss would be marrying a man with a name as strong as their own. Someone she truly liked and respected as a person. Not just a last name. Although, her words seemed to have meant little to her mother and father, because as soon as she was done, they had paired her with Sky Lark, budding heir to the Lark Aircraft Corporation.

Now that was a terrible year of dances, galas and family dinners. Never before had she ever spoken to someone so dull and without personality. With final resignation to her fate, Weiss stood up. No better time to handle her mother than the present.


	4. A Ball!

Two knocks on the door broke through the silence that filled the expansive halls of the Schnee Manor. The reply of “come in!” was said as more of a command than a request. Weiss’s mother looked much like Weiss herself; that is to say, she was a beautiful and poised woman who held an air of nobility around her whatever she was doing. Her long white hair was braided in a complicated manner and held together with two silver pins which sparkled in the light. Two piercing azure eyes marked an intellect that was hard to surpass. Even if said intellect was often used in purely selfish and self-serving vices.

Willo Schnee was sitting in a large leather armchair, her body facing towards a now empty fireplace. A massive painting of her father, Jacques Schnee in a regal black suit, sitting in the very same armchair, holding onto a toddler Willow, hung over the mantle. For most who saw the tea room, it could be considered a library, with hundreds, if not thousands of books placed in dozens of rows of shelves which lined the room, only spaced out by the locations of the floor to ceiling windows. Their blinds were always drawn tight to keep away any natural light, in favour of two large crystal chandeliers which hung down from the thirty-foot high ceiling.

The room could be considered a library. To them, it was just a small sampling of their books, as the manor’s library was located down the hall and made this room look like a tool shed by comparison. Weiss took a seat in the leather armchair beside her mother’s, a small redwood table filling the space between them. Two teacups rested on their saucers and a teapot filled with tea held the table’s center. Willow was sitting comfortably in her chair, a hand resting on her knee, the other holding a glass of red wine.

“Sit, my dear.” Willow commanded in an airy voice, gesturing to the teapot. “Please, help yourself. It’s your favourite.”

Weiss poured herself a cup, her smile quickly turning to a frown, noticing that what she expected to be her favourite mint tea, was instead her mother’s favourite, black tea. She should have expected that by now. It felt weird to have kept her hopes up that her mother would know such trivial things about her, like what her favourite tea was. But, at least there was lemon to flavour the drink with, which she helped herself to.

Only after Weiss took a small sip from her cup and thanked her mother for the privilege to accompany her for tea time, did Willo place her own glass down. The conversation would begin immediately. No time was needed for pleasantries between mother and daughter.

“Your father should be joining us shortly. He is currently in the office in a very important meeting which could not be delayed, even with the importance of this conversation.”

“Okay?” Weiss frowned.

“Weiss,” Willow said gently. “You are a young, beautiful, incredibly smart young woman.”

“But…”

“No buts. You are a young woman with so much promise and so many gifts. Your family name among them.”  
Weiss nodded and rolled her eyes. Of course this was just an attempt to butter her up to what they both knew was coming next.

“Weiss, you are almost eighteen years old. By your age, Jacques and I were already dating for two years. At eighteen, I was already betrothed to the man I would marry.”

“I understand, mother. I am happy that you discovered father when you did. I unfortunately, am not as lucky as you were at my age.” Weiss said between sips of tea.

“I fully concur. But Weiss, you aren’t getting any younger. You are mine and your father’s heir. It would make the both of us happy to see you properly wed. Or, at least with someone who does this family proud.”

Does this family proud. Not who makes you proud or even happy.

“I have been trying, mother.” Weiss expressed. “It is not my fault that men my age are immature and not prepared to court a Schnee. If you can find me someone that makes you proud and is mature and responsible enough to be seen alongside me, then I will gladly be with them- him.”

Weiss spoke in a much haughtier manner than what she truly believed. She cared greatly about the family and her responsibilities as heiress. But dating and marriage. That was supposed to be the one thing that was hers to choose. No wonder Winter gave up her position in the family in favour of military service. After a dozen of these conversations, she was almost ready to follow her.

“That is incredible to hear, daughter.” Came a booming voice from behind them. Weiss spun her head to see her father barge into the room, strutting towards them. 

His white perfectly-fitted suit was only coloured by a light teal tie and red handkerchief in his jacket pocket. His pale skin and trimmed white hair made him look like a perfect Schnee, matching her own and her mother’s white locks. His hair however, was completely dyed said colour to make him look more a Schnee, even though he had married into the family name.

Jacques Schnee, the patron of the family stood in front of the two women, hands resting lightly on his hips. Standing over the two, he looked all the more in charge. His expression was one of someone who knew he would get whatever he wanted, no matter who stood opposite him. It was an expression earned after years in charge of his world-spanning company.

“I am glad to hear that you will accept who we pick for you,” Jacques continued.

‘Not quite what I said,’ Weiss mused, allowing her father to continue. There was no point in arguing.

“I believe your mother and I have found a perfect man for you to marry. He is your age with an impeccable line. I had just been speaking with his father and we both agree that you two would make a perfect couple. More so, he would be a great successor to his company as well as the male successor to mine. I would like to announce your betrothal to him by the end of the year.”

“Betrothal?!” Weiss nearly spat out her tea. Coughing forcefully to cover her slip in demeanor, she placed her teacup back on the table and looked up at her father.   
“Would it not make more sense for me to date him first? Let alone meet him before we announce any sort of betrothal?”

“Did you not say that you would accept someone we believe would uphold the family honour?” Jacques lifted an eyebrow.

“I did… May I at least have his name?”

“Cardin Winchester. You’ve heard of the Winchester Weapons Corporation?” Willo nearly sprang from her seat in excitement as she revealed the name.  
Weiss had no emotion to share. Not that she could. She had never met the guy, nor heard much about him, aside from being close friends with her two previous exes. 

The Winchester Weapons Company she had most definitely heard of. She was still hoping to get a weapon made from the company. A new fencing foil with added firing elements. Much more like the unique weapons designed for huntsman than a competitive fencer, but it was a dream weapon she had wanted since she was a child.

“Cardin is said to be a brilliant weaponsmith. Your age and already crafting weapons for expert huntsman all around the world.”  
“The man is intelligent, a perfect person to stand beside my beautiful daughter. He of course will be changing his last name to Schnee, just as I did. But those are details we can plan later and closer to the date of your wedding.” Jacque said thoughtfully.

“Umm… father. If you will excuse the interruption.” Her father nodded. Weiss’s shoulders dropped in relief. “If it pleases you, I will marry him. But, I have many other suitors. Others from very respectable families. Families that you are in the process of completing business agreements with. Agreements that have may or may not implied a potential match with me. Would it not be dangerous to reveal a betrothal until these deals have been reached?”

Jacques paused for a moment, a finger rubbing his chin in thought. Before her father could get in a word, Weiss pressed on. A semblance of an idea to stall the betrothal forming in her mind.

“Would it not make more sense to let these families believe that our betrothal, or at least our dating was not something against your agreements… but… but a competition of sorts?”

“Continue,” Jacques motioned.

“Well… what if we hold a ball in the courtyard of Schnee manor. A competition of sorts. Cardin is a brilliant weaponsmith right? What if we have a competition where any who wish to enter can come and build a weapon, to be judged by expert weapon makers, with the final weapon chosen by myself? The winner will be allowed to court me. This arrangement would allow us to maintain our business agreements and allow me to date Cardin. If he is an expert, then he will surely win the competition. I can date him, and whose to argue if we fall in love and agree to wed in a year’s time, just as we would have anyway? You won’t be at fault for agreeing to your own daughter’s choice in husband, so any business deals will not be hampered. It is a win-win on your end. And because it is a competition and I have always wanted a huntsman foil, I can get a top quality one for free. A win-win-win, if you will.”

“Hmm… I am surprised that you have thought up such a good idea.” Jacques acquiesced. “I must admit. I did not factor in my business deals when thinking of your marriage to Cardin Winchester. And your idea not only protects my business arrangements but gives you a perfect opportunity to both meet Cardin, but also dance with him. This competition shall include a ball after all.”

Weiss let out a soft smile. Internally, she was throwing herself a party, dance music, lights and all. She might have just given herself a year more of freedom. And a weapon. Hoping to continue her role, Weiss spoke up again.

“I can handle everything related to the competition. Set up facilities, acquire materials, tools, paperwork and send out the competition details. I would love to have this event open to everybody, for a fee of course, but it could be nice to see some lower-class talent. Maybe even make it a sort of philanthropic event on top of everything. That is, mother. Would you be able to set up the ball? We both know that you are much more gifted in such affairs.”

Willow bowed her head. “Of course, my dear daughter. I will handle the ball. But, I do hope that this ball will only include respectable people. Your competition may include the filth, but I would prefer keeping the interior of our house clean from such rabble. Maybe the winner can be allowed in as an added bonus to your competition. But we all know the winner will be Cardin, so it’s a non-issue.”

“Thank you, mother. And thank you father for putting such credence into my suggestion. I hope to make you proud.”

Weiss stood to leave. Her father gave a curt nod, allowing her to exit the room, a small spring in her step. Jacques looked at his wife, a smile of victory tugging on his lips.

“That went much better than I expected. I thought that it would go the way of Winter.”

“We gave Weiss greater access to the family fortune than Winter. There is no way that Weiss would give up such wealth now that she had a taste of it. She is obviously trying to stall the betrothal, but I can’t help but say that she did so in a very unique way.”

“Agreed. I do want to see how her little competition and ball play out. An interesting idea. It was very Schnee of her. I can’t help it but be slightly proud. Make sure Cardin wins, Willow.”

“Obviously, dear husband. It would be remised to believe a child like Cardin could win. Don’t worry. I have a plan to ensure his victory.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this and want to see more, check out 0neWhoWanders on FFN.


	5. A Rose in Rags

"Okay Rubes, I'll be heading off to work. Make sure you get your homework done. I'll be needing your help with the physics mumbo jumbo when I get back." Yang shouted as she grabbed her jacket in her arms and held onto the front door.

"Have fun!" Ruby called back from her room, "bring back spaghetti for dinner!"

"Will do, see you later." Yang closed the door, locking it with her set of keys. Dressed in her waitress uniform, the blonde let out a huff. It was going to be a long and late night. Hopefully, the tips would be good. Just in case, she unbuttoned her shirt's top button before continuing on her way to work.

Ruby watched her sister walk from the front door, down the dirt path to their small gate and out into the neighbourhood streets. She watched patiently as Yang turned the corner, her sister leaving her field of vision. Yang always took the same path to work. She would walk for five minutes down their street, turn left into old man Robert's backyard, where she would hop the fence and save herself a ten-minute detour around the duck pond. Then another right turn and straight until she reached the flashy, but intricate sign which hung over the restaurant she worked at. An eight-minute trip by foot in each direction.

A six-hour waitress shift, followed by two hours of bartending -bartending every other day of the week, and all day on weekends- before she would complete the journey in reverse. Quickly, Ruby ran downstairs, holding onto Yang's favourite pillow, placing it on the couch. She moved the television remote from it's place on top of the television screen, to the small table beside the couch. Lastly, Ruby moved the alcohol from the cabinet into the back of the pantry. In Yang's exhausted post-work state, there was nothing more she liked than to collapse on the couch, flip through infomercial channels and drink. That was, until she could never remember where she last left the alcohol. Now, it was collapsing on the couch, flipping through infomercial channels and grumbling about her desire to have a stiff drink.

Ruby was proud of her idea to hide the throat-burning liquid. Yang was annoyed after working for so long, but she always felt much better in the morning. No longer having to deal with the headaches and pangs of guilt about whatever she said to Ruby, her friends or neighbours during her drunken ramblings. With her Yang-related chores out of the way, she rushed back into her room and opened her textbooks. It was a great night. Only homework for two classes and only one of them had a test coming up this week! That meant free time before Cinder arrived!

Just physics problems and chemistry sets. Only fifty of each. Since most of them would be pretty much the same question, repeated multiple times with slightly different numbers, she knew she would only need to do about half. Skipping over repeated questions when she understood the concepts well enough. Taking a moment to roughly calculate the amount of time it would take her to do the work to her level of satisfaction, she nodded to herself, having reached the conclusion that one hour and fifteen minutes was probably all she would need.

Quickly rushing downstairs, she grabbed a load of laundry and chucked it into their washing machine. The timer blared to life along with the humming machine, signalling the clothes would be clean in forty-five minutes. Enough time to complete most of the work before she could take a break to throw the clothes in the dryer. Back upstairs, pencil in hand, and she was working with a small smile on her face, humming some tune stuck in her head.

Beep! Beep!

"Break time!" Ruby cheered, tossing her pencil onto her physics work and kicking her chair behind her.

A skip entered her step as she bounded down the stairs, filling up the dryer and refilling the washing machine with the next load of laundry. Easy chores. Her favourite kind. And they had long since become a habit. Nothing was better than doing something easy without even needing to think about it. Back upstairs and back to work before Cinder arrived-

The doorbell let off its shrill ring.

Ruby's heart dropped. Oh no. Who was that? Was Cinder here early? Or worse, did Yang get home early?

She shook the last thought from her mind. No, Yang would never quit. That job was way too important to her and them. And no way would she be fired. Not Yang. Yang was a perfect worker. So respectful and kind. Maybe a little brash and quick to anger, but she was still awesome. Ruby wiped away that thought fully and walked down the stairs, only quickening her pace as the doorbell rang a second impatient time.

"I'm coming, I'm coming! Darn these little legs!" Opening the front door, she was pushed back by a taller, much more curvy woman. "He-hello Cinder! -erm, Miss Fall. Please come in."

"Little miss red riding hood. Have you had the time to complete my laundry?" Even belting out orders, Cinder Fall could still somehow make it sound like an honour to even listen to her sultry voice. She exuded confidence and sensuality.

Ruby nodded, "Your loads' in the dryer and Emerald's is in the wash. I'll get to folding it up and bagging it just how you like it the moment it comes out."

"Thank you, my pet." Cinder, placed a light finger under Ruby's chin, lifting her head to stare into her eyes. "As soon as you are done with that, I have your list of chores for you waiting on the servants entrance of my house. Remember, everything must be done before you can go home. I would hate for Yang to catch you leaving my house."

Ruby shook her head very seriously, her short hair swishing from side to side. "Of course not, ma'am. I do some chores when Yang's away and you take off 50 lien from the rent. And Mr. Torchwick-"

"And Roman will know not to do to your house what he did to Mr. Lie Ren and the Valkyrie girl."

Ruby visibly shuddered at the memory. There was so much smoke after that. Not a single one of their possessions had survived the blazing heat.

"I expect you in my house, completing your chores in one hour. Don't be late. Ta-ta." Spinning on her heel, Cinder walked off back the way she came.

Ruby closed the door slowly, rolling her eyes. Even as a fifteen-year old, she knew what gloating was. She had lost to Yang enough times while playing videogames to know.

It took her longer than usual to get back into the zone to do her homework. Her mind continuously drifted to Cinder and Torchwick and most of all, Yang. There was nothing she would not do for her big sister. She wanted to help with the rent, but Yang had always made sure that her mind was fully on her school-work and her hobbies.

The dryer rang out and Ruby left her work unfinished to fold Cinder's clothes and move Emerald's into the dryer. She thought back to when this all started. When she discovered Roman Torchwick stealing her mother's crystal vase. How he had threatened her. How, with nothing else she could do, went to Cinder for help. It was making a deal with the devil, but it worked. Torchwick was kept on a leash and she had not once seen his face again. All she had to do was whatever Cinder told her to do. It was worth it.

Things did however have a habit of going missing, since that day.

Ruby packed up Cinder's clothes in a small duffel bag, stopping the dryer and doing the same to Emerald's. They were still damp, but Emerald liked it that way, and who was Ruby do judge?

Shouldering the two duffel bags of clean, neatly folded laundry, she left her home and bounded down the street to Cinder's own house. It was much bigger than her own. Like a mansion -a castle even- to the young girl. There was over a dozen bedrooms and as many bathrooms and even a room for dances, but Ruby had never seen nor heard of any dances which took place in the Fall residence.

Entering through the servant's entrance, she grabbed the note taped to the door listing her many, many chores for the night. Most were fairly standard, Ruby thought as she looked through the first few points on the list. Leaving the duffel bags in their owners' respective rooms, she began her work.

Sweeping the floors.

Washing the stairs.

Dusting the shelves and behind the cupboards.

Organizing the furniture and picking up the clothes haphazardly strewn around nearly every occupied bedroom.

Cleaning out the cat's litterbox.

Mopping the kitchen.

Cleaning the ballroom by hand.

The list of chores went on and on. Ruby set to work, completing one task at a time, humming a soft tune that spoke of romance and adventure. Her short hair was held back by a rag, to keep out of her eyes as she scrubbed and rinsed and swabbed.

Ruby did her duty without a care in the world. All the while, two glaring eyes bore holes into her back. Held down in a scowl, Cinder watched from the shadows as Ruby took to her work, a longer set of chores than usual, without so much as a whimper in frustration.

"Why do you even give 'em these stupid ways to pay up the rent?" Mercury asked while leaning on a doorway, biting mindlessly into an apple.

"She doesn't need to tell you anything, dimwit. It's obvious anyways. Easier to let the little pipsqueak work for nothing, than to have Torchwick loot the place day in and day out. Right ma'am?" Emerald turned to Cinder, almost begging for praise.

Cinder smiled in compliance. Her underling blushed in triumph under the gaze.

"I must admit that I already tried that tactic against that family. They took it in stride. Their contract for rent is as ironclad as they come. It was able to pass through three separate landlords, none of whom could break it. Set price for monthly rent, terms for rent reductions, even terms for buying the land from the landlord. Fixed fees for that too. It is a miracle that the two girls don't have access to the original contract. They don't know that they are sitting on a goldmine."

"Again, why not just kill them off, if the land is so valuable?" Mercury wasted no time with minced words.

Cinder frowned, not liking her underling's tone. "Dear Mercury, why don't you use that big brain of yours and think for a second. If it were as simple as murder, then their home would be mine by now."

Her gaze finally broke away from the cursedly happy child and towards the silver-haired teenager in her employ. A playful smirk on her lips that meant she was toying with the guy. That she could ruin him without a thought, on just a whim. Mercury instinctively flinched.

"Don't worry, my pet. I am a patient woman. Eventually a loophole will be found, or things will fall into place. Good things come to those who wait."


	6. A Tale Most Grande!

"Guess what Rubes!" Shouted a willy buxom blonde, furiously waving a crumpled-up piece of paper in her hand. No mind to the fact that it was well passed midnight and Ruby had been asleep for at least an hour, Yang rushed upstairs, taking it two steps at a time. Her fists pounding on the sleeping girl's door felt like mini earthquakes.

Or at least as close to what Ruby had ever imagined earthquakes to feel like. She let out a loud whine and flipped over in bed, covering herself in her blankets. Yang burst through the door, annoyingly bright hallway lights shining angrily into the room, to witness the crimson haired sister cocooning herself.

"Rubes!" Yang threw herself onto Ruby, wrapping her arms around Ruby's blankets in a tight grasp.

"Y-Yang," the girl spluttered from inside her sheets, "I need… air."

"No time for air! I have awesome news!" Yang said excitedly, giving her little sister some breathing room, all the while yanking the blanket off her body and watching at the girl tumbled out of it.

Ruby's hair was a mess. Even as short as it was, Ruby still managed to find a strand or two stuck in her mouth. She grumbled, muttering to herself about an amazing dream and hair not tasting like cookie flavoured popsicles. Slowly rubbing the little sleep she had from her eyes, she wearily opened them to a Yang she was not at all used to.

Yang's mane of blonde locks was perfect in their frazzled, unkempt, -completely insane in a manner that took at least an hour every morning to maintain- sort of way. Her top two buttons of her blouse were undone, allowing for some imagination for her customers, but not as much as the young sister would have liked. Okay, at least all that was still normal Yang.

But still, she looked so completely alive. At that moment, it looked like she could take on the world and win. Ruby blinked back her confusion. Yang was always dead after a long day of work. Where was the slumping on the couch? The flipping through infomercial channels and complaining about the alcohol? After Ruby had spent such a long time finding a perfect spot to hide her bottles!

Ruby sat up cross-legged, placing her hands on the excited girl's shoulders, trying desperately to force her to sit still for a moment and explain herself.

As soon as she asked, Yang thrust the piece of paper at Ruby, nearly knocking her over, with an "oomf!"

"Yang, it's… two fifteen and a school night. Unless this is a cookie eating contest, can I go back to sleep?"

"Read it Ruby! No!" Yang quickly snatched the paper out of Ruby's hands. "No, let me tell you how I found it, THEN you can read it."

"Fine. Just not too long, I'm sort of tired. Homework and chores for- … you. Ya, chores for you, took a lot longer than I thought they would."

"Okay, okay, okay. Rubes, just picture the scene." Yang held up a hand in front of their eyes, scanning it over the imaginative horizon.

"It's night. I just got to work. Trudging through ten feet of snow, on my way to work as a monster-slaying badass. Just me, my quick wits and God-given beauty against an impenetrable forest of monsters and thick with evil man-eating shrubbery."

"Yang, we live in a small town. I've walked to work with you," Ruby moaned. She was silenced by a finger on her lips.

"Silence while the storyteller is spinning her magic." Yang said, still looking out at the horizon, which was in fact just Ruby's poster covered wall. Yang was currently staring at a poster of a famous female mechanic from Vale. "Anyways, there I was. Alone against ten -no, a hundred demons. I fought like a mad woman. Throwing demons left and right. Killing one with just a single punch. But, lo and behold. After facing off against a hundred, no a thousand of their smaller brethren, I was up against the biggest, strongest, meanest demon monster! I was tired from fighting, but still. I knew I had to reach my tavern to regale my guests in tales of adventure! Much like I'm doing with you, my dear sleepy baby sis. Now aren't you lucky."

Ruby huffed in amusement. As much as she hated to be woken up while she was sleeping, there was little a Yang Story could not fix.

"So, there I was. Facing against the largest monster Remnant has ever seen. I knew I couldn't defeat it alone. I had to escape. Find my comrades in arms. So I ran. Faster than ever before. Faster than you when you smell freshly baked chocolate chip oatmeal cookies." That earned a giggle from the happy girl.

"What did you do?" Ruby asked, finally getting into the tale.

"I decided to try my luck in escaping through the most dangerous place known to man. The mountain pass of the Backyard of Robert. A place so dangerous that only the bravest and strongest of warriors would even attempt. And well, just look at me. I'm pretty damn brave, strong and sexy, if I don't say so myself. I trudged through the mud filled pathway. Passed the sprinklers of doom and the barking backdoor of Fluffy the puppy. I finally reached the mountain fence itself. With great effort and not a little cursing, I climbed overtop and down the other side. I even ripped my pants on the spiked wood -erm, rocks, on the top!

"Finally, I had lost the demon monster. Or so I thought. I finally saw the illuminated signs of my tavern and the bright, smiling faces of my compatriots. Their faces turned to frowns as they saw it! Behind me, lurking in the shadows was the demon leader who had chased me. Now, with my friends behind me, I turned to face the monster. Sword in hand -yes Rubes, I now have a sword. Deal with it- I struck the beast in the snout. It growled in pain as it swept at my neck with its claws. That's definitely how I got these bruises on my neck."

"I know what a hickey is-"

"Shush baby sis, I'm on a roll. And no, you don't. One after another, my allies and I attacked. Pushing the monster back and back until it was trapped between us and a spouting volcano. In a moment of defiance, it chose the safer of the two paths. Wanna know what it did?"

Ruby nodded excitedly.

"It tried swimming in lava of course! Nothing is more dangerous and heroic than your big sister!" Yang pointed proudly at herself, as Ruby clapped at the story.

"Yang, that still doesn't answer what that piece of paper is. Nor why it's such awesome news."

"Oh right," Yang thought for a moment. "Okay, I got it. After we vanquished the terrible demon, we all decided to walk into the tavern for much deserved ale. On the wall, I saw the poster and decided to take it home after work. There, the end." Yang shrugged.

"C'mon! I wanna know! Yaang!" The crimson haired girl whined.

"You know how you are a dork for weapon-smithing? Or was it a nerd? I always get those two terms confused."

"I prefer master of all things weapons related." Ruby huffed, with crossed arms.

"Ah, weapons nut. That's it. Thanks Rubes. Anyways, at work I saw this table of college guys talking about some sort of competition. Decided to ask them about it and they gave me an extra copy of the poster that was hung up at the school. Ruby. It's a weapon building contest. You get to build a weapon for a Schnee."

Yang waited as Ruby internalized the information. Her frown slowly turning into a bright smile.

"That would be so cool! I would get to see experts at the craft!"

"Even better than that Rubes," Yang handed her the poster, finally allowing her to read it over. "The winner gets to go on a date with Weiss Schnee, the heir to the Schnee company. Think about the networking!"

"Yang, you sound so boring! Anyways, read here. It's 550 lien to even enter. Let alone the cost of travel. As cool as this is, can we even afford it? And look when it is! University people are coming some time that week to talk to us!"

"Ruby, who was the hero in my story?"

"You were?"

"And Ruby, who is your fairy god-sister?"

"You?"

"You got it! I promise you, Ruby. You will not only be able to afford entering that competition, you will also be able to travel there and back in style."

"And what about the university people"

"Trust me Rubes. They won't be coming that day."

Ruby reached out and tackled Yang into a giant hung. A hug which her sister gladly accepted and completed herself. "I love you Yang."

"Love you too Rubes. Just remember to keep your grades up. I'll handle the chores and money for miss grumpy pants. You just keep going for that scholarship. We'll nail our college interviews and live happily ever after. I promise."


	7. A Favour Between Friends

"Weiss, it's just for the day. You don't need me as your lady-in-waiting every day of the week." A raven haired faunus said in exasperation. It was the same conversation they had had the previous day. And the day prior to that. And the one prior to that, when Blake had informed her employer that she would be taking a day off in order to tour universities. Hidden behind her small frown, she was sort of glad in a way, that the Schnee in front of her was so angry at her for leaving.

"But-but, why now! I have a whole competition to plan and I can't do that by myself. Let alone dealing with mother while she is trying to find me a dress, and father trying to introduce me to another one of his competitor's marriageable sons. Let's not forget I still need your help on that essay for-"

"Ms. Schnee," Blake held onto Weiss's shoulders with both hands, her eyes stern, though with a raised eyebrow. Weiss fell silent immediately at the look, her lips pursed.

"I hate when you call me that…" She grumbled.

"Weiss, it's for a single day. I'm going to be touring Beacon University."

"I. Cannot. Survive alone. With. My. Parents." Weiss said between gritted teeth. Blake understood her angry whispering. Her ears twitched as she noticed the footsteps of Mr. and Mrs. Schnee. There was a soft rapt on Weiss's door.

Dropping her hands from Weiss immediately, she took a step back, her head bowed. That was the sight Jacques Schnee walked in on. Weiss with an angry glare and the faunus staring longingly at the floor at his daughter's feet. The Schnee father's normally serious expression softened for a moment before returning to normal. It was almost like he was… proud.

"Ah, daughter. Sorry to interrupt you disciplining your servants. Brilliant work on handling the faunus. See? I told you that hiring one of them would be great practice for handling the animals in the future."

Blake tensed up, both hands squeezing tightly into fists. She glanced up to see Weiss's imperceptible head shake. Forcing the feelings of anger out of herself, Blake relaxed. Jacques Schnee, either not noticing or more likely not caring, continued on speaking with his daughter.

"Once you are done with that, daughter, I would greatly appreciate it if you to join me in my study. I'm meeting with Mr. Winchester and he explained to me that his son may join him. To lean the 'tricks of the trade' as Mr. Winchester so eloquently put it. If you would-"

"I can't." Weiss interrupted, her wide eyes darting around the room. "I- I… I'm going to be touring universities. That's why I was talking-disciplining Ms. Belladonna here. She was supposed to get a car ready for me."

Blake bowed her head, "I am deeply sorry, ma'am. Please forgive my mistake."

"Just this once. Don't let it happen again," Her haughty voice carried, echoing around her bedroom.

"Well, I see that you have plans. Plans for your future… good. Good! Ms. Belladonna, I'm docking you a day's pay for your actions." Blake winced at the punishment but remained silent. She had long since learned it was better to accept the first punishment than to argue. "Weiss, although you shall be going to Atlas Academy, it is always worthwhile to visit other places of learning. Making new contacts, as it were. Please have Klein inform me when you return."

"Of course, father." Weiss nodded as he exited the room. As soon as the door clicked, Weiss felt herself fall to the floor, her shoulder cracking with the light tingle of pain.

"Hey! What was that for?" She asked sheepishly from her position on the ground.

"That's for losing me a day's wages." Blake fumed, hands on her hips, standing over the heiress.

Weiss shrugged and crept to her feet, waving off any of Blake's complaints. "Whatever. I buy stuff for you anyways that more than triples your salary. I guess I'll just be needing to buy _another_ first edition, signed set of whatever erotica-romance drivel you are currently reading."

"One, it's not erotica. They are proper adult romance novels. Two, you owe me for getting you out of dad duty."

"And you still need to fetch my car."

Blake harrumphed, following it with a smile. "Toss me my scroll."

* * *

"Okay, you can drop me off here!" Weiss called out as the limousine slowed to a stop at the side of the road.

As the driver made his way around the car to open up the girl's door, Blake gave her friend a curious look.

"I didn't schedule a tour. Just meet me back here when you are done and tell me all about it. I'll just spend the day visiting the town." Weiss, said, answering Blake's unasked question. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. Just remember as much as you can. Father will no doubt quiz me on the campus when we get back. Enjoy yourself."

Weiss gracefully slid out of the vehicle and watched as the driver closed her door for her and drove off with the only person she could hope to describe as more than a colleague. Closing her eyes for a moment, allowing in all the sounds of Vale. It was a big city. Not as big as Atlas per se, but it was not some backwater neighbourhood like those she had read about. This place held proper people and proper stores.

The thought of going shopping flicked through her mind briefly as she walked by a window with a mannequin in a fancy knee length dress edged with dark blue. There was no way she could come back with shopping bags and still convince her father that she had been touring and not shopping. But window shopping was nice too. Even though she was rich, it did not mean she had lost sight of the value of things. Just that she could afford those things without blinking her eye at a price tag.

Turning onto one of the busier streets, Weiss noticed a small café. It was stuck between two large stores; a clothing store named for some famous Mistralian designer, and a wedding boutique. Taking a seat at one of the outdoor tables and ordering from a cute but shy waitress, she glanced out at the view. There were so many people. More so, there were so many smiling people. It did make sense, Weiss was sitting between a store meant for wealthier clientele and one for women preparing for one of the happiest days of their lives.

Still, she sipped on her steaming coffee amusedly, people watching.

Her eyes drifted through the people around her. Most were sitting two to a table. Predominantly women with shopping bags and boxes on the remaining chairs. There were no children, but that was to be expected. It was mid-day after all, and what child would want to spend it shopping? Let alone shopping for expensive clothing that was more suited to a wealthy woman.

She listened in on a conversation or two. Not that what any of those people had to say were interesting, of course, but it was in idle curiousity. One table spoke of the weather, and meeting with someone; most likely famous or rich, judging by how often his name was dropped in the conversation. Weiss had never heard of the man, but she rarely did hear about people with some money or some popularity. No, only the rising stars and the already rich and powerful for her. It annoyed her greatly.

After the seventh time the same name was repeated in as many sentences, Weiss had enough of sitting near them and got up to leave, setting a small bill down at the table.

"Ma'am!" Her waitress called behind her. "Do you want your change? I-I don't think that I can break a bill this size without opening up the cash register…"

Weiss waved her off, "Keep the change."

The waitress blushed behind the lien. Her tip was many times more than the price of the drink she had delivered. To Weiss, it was pocket change. Technically not even worth picking up off the ground were she to drop it. Not that she would leave it on the ground. Blake had taught her the value of money, even if her parents were trying to teach her the opposite.

Deciding that a change of scenery would be nice, Weiss left the highly trafficked rich district she was in and headed towards a just as busy intersection. The road was blocked off with orange pylons and a white picket fence, leaving enough space for foot-traffic to move through, but keeping away any vehicles. Judging by the sounds of street music, as well as the sheer number of people, there was some event happening.

With a thin, reserved smile, Weiss calmly walked into the street fair. At once, the white-haired heiress was bombarded with smells she was unaccustomed with. Fresh fish held a tangibly pungent odour. But, it was mixed with the sweet smells of lilac and saffron and a plethora of other spices and herbs. Vendors standing underneath colourful open aired tents were shouting out their wares. There were fruit vendors and vegetable vendors. Those selling jewelry made of gold; both real and fake. As well as hand crafted artisan wood-work, ceramics and beads. Weiss's breath caught in amazement. It was like walking into a whole other world.

She had never seen so many people of different classes and cultures all mixed together. She noticed some painters, painting on the street, standing beside buskers, playing melodic up-beat tunes, with children dancing. Both to the joy of their parents and the amusement of those around, watching. Weiss saw people in shabby clothing, walking past those in finer clothes than Weiss herself was currently wearing. Lien exchanged hands between buyer and seller. Rich and poor. It made no matter, since all seemed to be enjoying the experience. Weiss's head darted around. She had not even made it through the first set of shops and already she felt like her head was going to explode in sheer fascination and delight.

Her eyes swiveled to a small lightly crowded vendor, selling unique woodwork and paintbrushes. Squeezing her way to the front of the group to take a better look at the products, she noticed that the paintbrushes hanging from the display behind him were all widely unique. Each one was delicately carved with faces of people or animals. Some held majestic sceneries which spiraled around the wood end of the brush. The tinsels themselves were all perfectly straight, speaking of a high-quality brush. Weiss's eyes sparkled in delight.

She bought a dozen brushes and can small can of red paint.

The trip already seemed worth it, in Weiss's eyes, then and there. Smiling for what felt like the first time in months, the young woman continued through the stalls and stands. Only to feel herself tackled to the ground with only a small "eep!" coming from her attacker.


	8. Almost There

"Come on, come one, come on! Let's go! Let's go!" Ruby tugged on her sister's arm, pulling her towards the train station. Yang with a devilish smile on her face, was slowly sauntering down the sidewalk, slowing down whenever Ruby pulled on her.

Ruby's face grew red with the effort, holding Yang's arm over her shoulder and putting her bodyweight into a final tug. It was met with defiance and the easy strength of a girl much taller and stronger than her. In all, Ruby was displeased with the rewards for her efforts. That is to say, there were none.

"Yang, please walk faster! I don't want to miss the train!" Yang laughed at her little sister's complaints, easily pulling her hand from her sister's grasp.

"Don't stress out, Rubes. We have plenty of time before the train gets here. And it's not like you're the one who'd be late. You already had your tour of Beacon U. Fully paid for by the school and-"

"-and the headmaster was my tour guide. I know Yang." Ruby cut in. "It's just that we rarely go to the city and I read that there was a street fair happening this weekend and they might be selling new parts I could use for Crescent Rose, and I saw a picture of a wood rose which I thought was pretty and maybe a new set of-eep!"

Her single-breath speech cut off as Yang lifted her into the air. A sure-fire way to cut off Ruby's ramblings. "Ruby. Breath."

She waited until she heard Ruby's annoyed inhale and exhale before dropping her. "There you go. Feeling better now?"

Ruby nodded.

"If you really want to get to the train station so badly, why don't I give you the money and you can buy us tickets to Vale?"

Carefully handing the girl the lien, she could only smile at Ruby's patiently outstretched hands. As soon as the money touched her palms, Ruby's fingers clamped down and she raced off.

For Ruby, it was never so much as the thought of her and Yang being late to catch the train. Ruby was fifteen, she knew that trains to Vale ran multiple times a day. Missing a train would only mean waiting around until the next one came by an hour and a half later. No, it was never about the train. Ruby just could not stand how slow her sister walked. Ruby loved to run. The wind hitting her face and her heart pumping and feet hitting the pavement, propelling her forward with every step.

Apparently, that was something her mother used to do as a kid. Run everywhere. It felt like they were still connected, whenever she ran. Honestly, she could not remember what her mother really looked like, let alone if her mother ran anywhere. But, she trusted Yang enough to know these things. As well as how she would say that they looked the same. It was so annoying that they both misplaced the family photo album. It was one thing to see a picture of her mother as an adult, holding baby Ruby in her arms. It was quite another to remember her face with her own eyes.

Still, she ran down the street, veering to the right around a flower corner shop. Soon enough, the train station came into view.

It was by no means a massive station. But it wasn't small either. As the primary method of bringing supplies; food and otherwise, into Patch, it was also the best way to send stuff into the city of Vale. Sure, there was also boats and bullheads and of course, the bridge, but all were slower and often packed on weekends. Besides, Ruby enjoyed riding in trains with Yang. She knew that Yang enjoyed it as well.

The station was a bricked building, painted to look like it was built from massive stone blocks. It was a long building, taking up most of the street block, with a bell-tower to one end, which rang every noon. It was quite busy inside when Ruby entered, but she noticed the most were walking around, rather than standing in lines to buy tickets. With a small laugh, she hopped into line behind an older gentleman, wiggling in anticipation for her turn.

Now, it was fairly irregular for Ruby to buy tickets herself, without Yang present. Often, if Ruby was buying tickets, then Yang would be standing nearby, waiting for her. Or standing beside her, letting Ruby talk to the station clerk. But having Yang not even within eyesight and buying tickets? That might be a new experience for the girl. Taking a step forward in line, she felt her heart beat a tiny bit faster. Playing with a strand of hair, she took another step forward. The older gentleman was buying his tickets. Ruby was next. Ruby's eyes widened and she felt a small panic attack verging towards the surface of her chest.

"Next!"

Ruby blanched. The older gentleman moved to the side and Ruby was left standing in place, the station clerk staring straight at her. She did not move. Even if she tried, she did not believe her legs would budge. She had to buy train tickets. Yang was counting on her! Why, oh why could she not just have a normal conversation with this completely random stranger, like Yang always does? Sometimes Ruby had no clue how Yang was able to survive as a waitress and bartender. Having to talk to all those people. Be able to come up with a semblance of a thought at a moment's notice, without taking minutes to prepare in advance. Maybe she had a whole bunch of different sentences in her head which she used? Ya, that's how Ruby could see herself doing a job like that. There was no way anyone could just talk to a random stranger without thinking ahead to what they were going to say. If only she-

"Next! Come on kid, lines waiting."

Ruby blushed and quickly stepped forward as the clerk's harsh words pulled her from her reverie.

"C-can I get a ticket to Vale?"

The station clerk began punching in her request.

"No wait! Two tickets. I-I need two tickets."

"Sure thing kid."

The clerk added a new ticket to the order and printed off the two train tickets, handing them to Ruby as Ruby slid the man her lien. Without a second thought to the blushing, incredibly nervous girl, the clerk bellowed, "Next!"

Ruby breathed a sigh of relief. She did it! She actually talked to somebody without Yang being around to help. Now, all she needed to do was tell-

"Ruby!"

No, not Ruby, she needed to tell-

"Ruby that was awesome!" Yang called out with a smile and a wave. "So proud of you for doing that. I thought you might freak out and wait for me, but you totally proved me wrong!" Yang gave Ruby a friendly punch in the shoulder. Much lighter than any friendly punches she would give to any of her friends. It was Ruby after all. There was absolutely no way that she would ever hurt her sister.

"Yaang! Were you watching?" Ruby whined.

"Duh! Of course I was. From the minute you ran off. Don't worry. It still counts as you being by yourself." Yang winked. "Now, come on. We have a train to catch and I have a university to visit and you have knick-knacks to buy!"

The train arrived ten minutes later. Ruby and Yang found two seats near to the front, with Ruby grabbing the seat closest to the window and Yang settling in beside her. The train gave off its familiar drone and sped down the tracks. The familiar view of Patch, with its small buildings, made way to the large forest which surrounded the town. The forest was a heavy green. Trees, bushes and shrubbery filling up every space, making any attempt to walk through it difficult.

The forest did begin to thin as they neared the edge of the island. From there, it was onto the bridge spanning between the island and the rest of the continent. Ruby loved this part. When the sounds changed from the rough chugging of the train to the almost gentle click-clacking of spinning steel on wooden tracks. The sounds coming off the bridge were completely different from those on hard ground, but nobody seemed to notice besides her. Maybe it was because it was for such a short time. Maybe it was just an insignificant thing to happen, amid all the important real-life events.

It did not matter to Ruby. She enjoyed the sounds even if she was the only one. She still tried to replicate that sound in the spinning of a revolver spool in her workshop. But she could never quite get the sound right, when using the materials she bought with whatever little money she had, nor from the old parts she was able to scrounge around for in junk yards and trash cans. She would get it one day. It was just too nice of a sound to forget about.


	9. The Gifts of Beauty and Song

Ruby and Yang hugged goodbye as the taxi pulled up to the train station. The two waved at each other until they were gone from each other's sight. Yang, sitting in her cab on the way to tour Beacon University. Ruby, sitting on the side of the street, exactly two blocks away from the street fair she had been wanting to visit. Yang had made sure that Ruby knew how close the fair was from the station, so that the young sister would not get nervous about walking through the busy streets alone. Not that anything bad would happen to her. It was daytime and she was walking at most ten minutes between two heavily policed areas of a major city. Nothing at all to worry about on the safety side of things.

Ruby was completely unworried. There was no fear in her mind at all. Not a blip. Even her lack of fear lacked any fear. And that lacked fear as well. Or so she kept telling herself as she looked left and right, then left again before crossing the busy intersection alongside at least a hundred other random people.

It wasn't just that she was now in the middle of such a big city and could get lost in any of the hundreds of streets and intersections and dark alleys. No, Ruby was not scared of getting lost. She was scared that when she did inevitably get lost, she would be forced to ask somebody for directions. Sure, she played it cool back in her little neighbourhood in Patch, where she knew everybody by name. She could hold a conversation with the best of them.

As long as Yang was there.

And they did most of the talking.

The short crimson-haired girl continued alongside the crowd, being herded along with them as they passed by small shops and coffee boutiques and other novelty stores. Ruby fought herself when she noticed a confectionary. Freshly made cookies and little cakes dotted the window sill, letting their sugary goodness waft through the noses of those passing by. Many did indeed cave to the pressure, but not Ruby.

Not because she did not want to. Ruby spent the next block muttering to herself about it. "Listen Ruby," she warned herself in a sing-song whispering voice. "You can't afford any cookies. You promised Yang you would spend your money at the fair. You promised her. You can buy cookies at the fair. No- bad Ruby. No buying cookies at the fair. Buy important stuff or things that interest you. No food. You have food at home with Yang."

Ruby smiled to herself, pleased with how she handled her own inhibitions. "Good Ruby, I think you deserve a cookie… darn!"

Chiding her inability to handle her own inhibitions, Ruby pressed onwards. She had a busy day planned. One she was super excited for. All the things she wanted to get. To see, even. She wondered if it would be at all like that fairy-tale movie, she had watched in the library during movie night. People on the streets, shouting out their wares. She had a hoodie! Maybe she could pretend to be a princess in disguise.

 _Would that mean a prince would rescue you?_ she wondered, shaking the thought from her head. Not that she would keep the thought from wandering into her head later. Nothing was better than playing pretend.

She was a master at playing pretend. She played it in her workshop, pretending to be a master weapons smith, forging blades for kings and knights to battle evil demons. She played it in her room, imagining that the people in the posters she had were all her best friends and they were designing something brand new. A never-before seen piece of equipment. She did it in the forests and streams around their home. The Daring Ruby Rose was an adventurer-slash-explorer, searching out new unexplored lands. She played pretend around Yang whenever she asked questions about why Ruby seemed to have so much laundry or was cleaning Miss Fall's car. She played pretend when she was stuck in Miss Fall's home doing so many chores. Endless chores which hurt her back and made her want to just give up.

She played pretend when she was tucked into bed. She pretended that her entire family was still perfect and whole.

The orange canvas of tents began to emerge from above the crowds of people. As did the beautiful sounds of music. Violins and countless brass instruments of so many unique designs and shapes all coming together in a cacophony of brilliant street music. It brought a smile to her lips as her feet unintentionally skipped along to the beat.

She would have to dance a little bit before the day was over. Not that she would stop her current state of dance-walking, as she ventured from one stall to the next. Her feet tapped whenever she stood, her shoulders and head bouncing. Maybe even a hip wiggle or two when she thought no one was watching. Not that it should matter, there were plenty others who were doing exactly as she was.

There were just so many people! And for once in her life, that was a good thing! So many people all talking about anything and everything. Packed together in such a close space, yet still in good spirits. The air was nice and warm and comforting. Music filled any empty space between conversations, and smells of fresh bread, spices and countless other products filled every breath. Not to mention the colours! Reds and oranges and yellows. It was like a forest between seasons. A forest of canvas that was forever fall.

And then Ruby heard something she had only ever dreamed about. Probably the two most beautiful words she had ever heard; aside from her mother's full name.

"Free Samples!"

The chant was picked up by multiple vendors along the line. Waving tiny portions of their product for all to try. That of course included a bubbly girl who was currently zipping between stands, taking food on sticks and gushing about their quality.

"Oh my god!" Ruby groaned into the tiny stick of chicken in some sort of green sauce. "That is so good. What's it made from, it tastes so familiar!"

"That my little lady, is my specially made mint-sauce. From the freshest ingredients of course." Came the vendor's helpful remarks.

"That's it!" Cried Ruby in delight. "I knew it tasted familiar! My big sister grows mint in her garden! Thank you!"

Ruby seemed to shout every word she spoke, but a smile never left her face nor to the man whom she was speaking. Even without making a sale, he looked pleased at the girl's enjoyment of his product.

Continuing on, Ruby ate and drank to her heart's content and her stomach's delight. She thought she would be waiting until she saw Yang again to eat. Now she was going to be full before dinner! It brought another massive smile to her lips.

And then, above the racket of the people and the sweet songs of buskers did she hear it. A soft pitter-patter of wood on metal. It was a fast sound. Too fast for what she truly wanted, but the pitch and tone were there, if not the tempo. She closed her eyes and listened for the sound again.

CLICKITY-CLACK!

She carefully slowed down the sound in her mind, hoping she was not just making a mistake. No, it was near perfect. Maybe a little off key to what she wanted, but what she wanted was out of tune, so that could work as a base. It sounded like a train. A train moving over a wood bridge.

She knew what she was going to spend her money on. No matter what that thing was, it had the sound she wanted. Spinning in place, she gazed intently at each and ever shop, hoping to find the source of that sound.

CLICKITY-CLACK!

There!

A music shop. The storekeeper was holding some spinning toy. Every time he spun it in his hand, it brought forth that beautiful sound. She had to have it. There was no way Ruby would let the bustling crowd, now moving in the opposite direction stop her from claiming her prize.

With effort and a bit of vocal acknowledgement to her petite stature, Ruby slipped through the crowd. Weaving in and out of groups, bobbing between conversations and slinking under one countertop where two men were playing cards, Ruby pushed on.

It was so close, almost within her reach. Squeezing through two people, she flew forward. Panting at the exertion.

"Hi, I'm Ruby!" She waved at the shop keeper.

"Well howd'you do? Want to take a peak at my music shop? Play with any instrument you like, just don't drop it!" The rule he gave was done with a friendly smile and wink.

"Sir, what was that think you were using? It made the clickity-clackity sound?"

"This? Oh, just a little something of my own design. Has a nice sound, don't you think? I use it to help with my dog. She seems to enjoy it enough to quiet down whenever she gets in one of her moods. Mailman and all. You like it?"

"Ya! It has the best sound ever? Can I… can I try it?"

"Sure thing Ruby." He handed over the small wooden contraption.

As Ruby toyed with it in her hands, her gears began spinning. The device was fully assembled out of wood, with metals bearings and nails used as physical contact points for the wood fan to slap into as it rotated. Carefully, she spun it, so that the wood fan hit a metal spool just once. A faint click. Bringing it up to her ear, she tried again, revelling in the amazing sound. This was it! The perfect sound. Brilliant shape. The outer casing was wood, but it appeared to be just for containment purposes. That could be changed to thinner sheet metal. Maybe give it a bit more room so that it could echo. The wood was oak. Or maybe pine. Something easily found around Patch, so she could most likely make more than one if needed. And if she had this as a base model to work with.

It was perfect. All she had to do was-

"Mind if I have that back? Can't be too careful. That's the one I just sold to a tall fella. Went to go grab some stuff to trade me with."

"Do you have any more?" Ruby asked hopefully, her eyes wide and lips set in the most adorable pout she could muster.

The shop owner shook his head, "sorry ma'am. This is the last one. But you might be able to convince him to let you buy it. He's just right over there, by the fish stand. Gotta be quick about it though."

"Thank you, mister!" Ruby squealed, flying off in the direction of the buyer. She knew she could do it. All she had to do was be as cute as possible. Then he would have to let her buy it. Maybe if he knew she was only going to use it to see how it was made and maybe tweak it a little. Then she could even give it to him!

With a brilliant plan in mind, she raced towards the man, just as he turned to leave. "Almost there," Ruby huffed, her legs pumping furiously. "Almost there."

All of a sudden, someone strode into her path. "Eep!" She shouted as her vision was filled with white.


	10. Misunderstandings

"Ugh!" Weiss grumbled loudly, slamming the door to the limo closed before her driver could get to it. Blake flinched at the loud sound, her upper ears dropping to block as much excess noise as possible.

"Just drive. I have no more patience for insolent little brats." Weiss muttered to the driver, before turning her attention inward, muttering to herself about childish redheads and blind pests. Blake waited patiently for her friend's mutterings to slow, if not stop altogether. She waited a lot longer than she cared to admit.

Finally, as the limousine was crossing the boundary of Vale and out towards home, Blake spoke up. "So. How was your day?"

Weiss, with arms folded tightly in front of her chest, glared at her friend. Without a word, the two shared a silent conversation. Blake telling Weiss to not let a stranger ruin her day. Weiss telling Blake to look at her dress. Blake complied with an eye roll.

Weiss's clothes were pristine in their craftsmanship. The collar with white with a faint blue trim which hung tight around her neck. It flowed down the length of her arms, stopping just passed her elbows, showing off the girl's dainty pink forearms, which almost matched the deep red of the sleeves.

Blake froze for a second. "Didn't you come in a white dress?"

Weiss responded with a raise of her eyebrow. Continuing her gaze, she noticed the deep red continuing to coat the dress in uneven splotches.

"So… you spilled some paint?"

Weiss twitched, letting loose a string of expletives, her hands waving madly in the air. Blake thought it wise to raise the partition. Best to not have their driver listening in to what would no doubt be a tense and loud conversation. "That dolt attacked me and covered me in paint! She refused to look where she was going and had the sheer audacity to push me to the ground in broad daylight! And what's worse? Worse?! She yelled at me for not paying attention to my surroundings."

Weiss let out a loud grimace of frustration, her fists clenched leaving white knuckles.

* * *

Across the city in nearly the exact opposite direction, a surprisingly similar conversation was progressing. A girl in a red oversized hoodie was pacing through the narrow lanes of a mostly empty train car.

"Can you believe that Yang?" Ruby huffed in annoyance, pouting like a puffed-up chipmunk to her elder sister. "The girl just walked right into me. I was so close to getting my perfect sound and she just had to get in my way. It wasn't like I was running quietly!"

Yang chuckled, "when do you ever run quietly."

"I know!"

Ruby's cheeks and forehead were turning red as she angrily complained to her sister. "She fell over and I stopped and apologized like you always tell me to, even if it wasn't my fault. And then she yelled at me! I tried to help her off the ground and she just shoved me away and asked me if I knew her. Why would I know her?"

"Maybe she's famous or something?" Yang guessed, relaxing back into her seat, as the sounds of the train echoed through the tunnel they had just entered.

"How would I know! Unless she is Glynda flipping Goodwitch, I don't care."

"Hey missy, language."

"I said flipping."

"You meant fu-"

"Language!" Ruby said, slapping her sister's shoulder, much to her sister's mirth.

"So, she's yelling at me and then I tell her that she should be looking where she was going just as much as me."

"Is that all?"

"I might have… sorta… maybe screamed my question. And called her a princess… and a jerk…"

* * *

"A princess! Can you believe that? What right does she have to call me anything."

"Thou doth protest too much." The faunus replied. "You wear a tiara-"

"It's a hair pin."

"Shaped like a tiara. Conjecture. You are immensely wealthy and live in a castle."

"Mansion estate."

"You call your house an estate."

"Look what she did to my dress, Blake. It's most likely worth more than her family's entire house! And it's completely ruined. Of course, I admonished her for not paying attention. What else would I do? What would you do if you were in that situation."

"I'd have asked for her apology? Maybe get her to pay for a new can of paint and for the dry cleaning cost?"

Weiss smacked her forehead. "I knew I forgot something! The pest made me forget to buy a new can of paint."

"Do you want to turn around and-"

"No," Weiss waved off her friend. "We have to get back anyways and I know you are busy this afternoon. I can buy another can some other time. I think I just need to rant a bit more to you. She just- she-" Wiess huffed in anger. "She just makes me so angry!"

"Then carry on."

* * *

"She just kept yelling and I wanted her to stop so badly. I think I yelled back more. I just don't remember anymore. It got worse when I saw the man grab the toy from the music shop. My chance was gone. I just… I snapped! Oh Yang I hated her so much! She was being so mean, wasn't she? All because she got a little bit messy. She spilled some paint on me too, but you don't hear me whining about it!"

"Rubes, your hoodie is red. And still covered in oil markings, I thought you cleaned this already? Never mind, I just don't think she even noticed."

"Still. I never want to see her again."

* * *

"I never want to see her face ever again."

* * *

"Her mean frown."

* * *

"Her inconsiderate behaviour."

* * *

"Her princess attitude."

* * *

"Her rude and uncivilized rambling."

* * *

"I just-"

"Really hate-"

"That-"

"Dolt."

"Princess."


	11. To Tell A Tail

"Are you done?" Yang asked as Ruby flopped down in the chair beside her, arms crossed and hood covering her face. After a moment, Ruby's hood swayed forward and back in a slow nod. Refusing to lower the hood herself, Yang did it for her, receiving a shout of "Hey!" in response.

"It's good manners to look at the person talking to you and not hide in your hood." Yang chided.

A tiny squeak of apology and Ruby turned to properly face her sister. Legs crossed on her seat, she leaned forwards, resting her chin on her palms and elbows on the armrest. Her full attention on Yang.

"So, how was your tour of Beacon U?"

"I…" Yang's cheeks turned a delightful shade of pink. "I think I met someone."

* * *

The taxi rounded the bend which made up the entrance to the bus loop in front of one of the most prestigious universities in the country. Beacon University was a sight to see. The main campus building, often called Beacon Tower, stood proudly in the distance. The massive metal bell hanging from its upper level basking in the glow of the brightly sunny day.

Yang made her way from the central bus loop towards the mass of other potential students, all following the carefully marked signs. In case anyone was foolish enough to not read the signs, nor follow the crowds, upper year students all wearing the same bright orange 'Tour Guide' t-shirts were shouting out this information as well as asking any questions for those in more specialized tours. It was to one of these orienteers that Yang made her way to.

"Hiya!" She said with a smile and a wave. Both of which were returned to her after a moment's hesitation. "Any idea where the Hunters are supposed to go?"

The man she was talking to gave off an easy smile as he leaned back against a lamppost. "Hunters? You going Fi or Fab?"

"Just pretend that I am an innocent and sweet little high school senior who has no understanding of any college slang."

"Right, right. Forgot that the newbies don't really know what we're talking about. Fighting or Fabrication? You want to build stuff or use that stuff to beat up people?" Giving her a look-over, he continued, running a hand through his messy light blonde hair. "I'm guessing you're the more adventuring sort."

Yang nodded, "yup. Gonna be a Huntress."

"Sweet!" He cheered, "I don't think I caught your name. I'm Sun Wukong, but you can just call me Sun."

"Yang," she replied, gripping his outstretched hand with her own. "You've got yourself a nice campus over here. I'm hoping for a scholarship or something to afford this place."

"She is a beaut if I do say so myself. And I do. Most of us here in the Fighting program have scholarships so don't freak yourself out too much. Unless you're going for the multi-year scholarships or full-ride ones. Those are a bit more tricky. Especially for people going fabrication. See blue haired guy over there?" Sun pointed at a man in the same orange shirt he was wearing. Yang followed his finger to the guy, receiving a wink when he caught her eye.

"One, don't worry about Neptune. He's a flirt, but he's harmless."

"Then I bet we'll get to know each other quite well," Yang winked back at him, leaving him blushing and turning in the other direction.

"Ha! I like you already. But Nep there is my best friend. He's in fabrication. Built me my weapon and everything. Genius guy over there. Talented, smart and quite handy with weapons too. We all thought he was a shoo-in for a full ride. Or at least one of those big scholarships."

"Guessing he didn't get it?"

"Unfortunately, nadda." Sun agreed with a frown. "Got himself a small thousand lien scholarship which helped pay for textbooks and some spare parts, but not close to enough for even a semester's fee. Good thing the guy's cousins are loaded. Weapon Smithing is not a cheap degree."

"Weapon Smithing? I thought you said Fabrication?!" Yang blanched.

"Same thing. Why? I thought you were going to be a Huntress?"

"My sister is going into Weapon Smithing." Her head dropped. "And we both need scholarships. She needs one of the really big and impressive ones because there is no chance that I'd manage to get one."

"Ooh, tough break. Sorry. But, if you do need help, I bet I can send Neptune your sister's way. If she's anything like you it shouldn't be a prob-"

"She's two years younger than me, adorable and very shy."

"I'll give you my number. Ask me any questions you guys have." Sun concluded, handing her a card from his pocket. Upon a quick examination, it looked like a cheaply made business card with the school's logo in the upper right-hand corner and Sun's cellphone number in the middle. Based on the number of cards being handed out by other orienteers, they all had the same kind.

"Almost forgot to answer your question! Woops. You're going to want to head back the way you came. We're on the other side of campus from Beacon Tower. Just head passed the bus loop until you reach the library and arts majors' wing. Then hang a right. Couldn't miss it if you tried."

With a friendly thank you and wave goodbye, Yang was on her way. Now only filled with a slight amount of dread for her hopes of going to school with Ruby. She had long since agreed with herself that if only one of the two of them would be going to university, it would be her baby sister. No doubt at all. Even if it meant taking on more jobs and working herself to death, she would do it to help Ruby live her dream.

Sure, Ruby would feel bad about Yang not achieving her own dream, but it was a big sister's duty to help. It would be what mom and dad would have wanted for them.

She shook the thoughts from her head. Why waste a campus tour on such sad notions? Today was a day to enjoy the place, meet some new people and maybe check out a cute-

Yang stopped, listening as a limousine screeched into the bus loop, stopping only paces away from her. The door opened to a raven-haired beauty with a cute dark purple bow. She looked around, marvelling at the sights before turning around and thanking the driver by name. With a smile and a wave, Yang watched the girl watching the limousine head out.

"Had your fill?" Came a lower pitched voice than Yang expected.

"Not quite yet... And… ah, there we go." Yang quipped with a smirk, walking over to the girl, "sorry, I didn't mean to stare. It's not everyday that you see a limousine. Oh, and a cute girl."

The girl rolled her eyes. "Got a name?"

Yang shrugged, "probably. But I'd rather have yours."

"That was… way too smooth. I'm Blake. Belladonna."

"Yang Xiao Long," Yang responded, shaking Blake's hand. "Here for the orientation too?"

Blake nodded, "I am. I guess you wouldn't happen to know where the creative writing students are supposed to go?"

"Actually I do! Part of the arts majors, right? I'm heading over to Huntsmen Academy. Arts majors building is on the way. You're free to join me."

Yang walked confidently with Blake trailing beside her. The girl was quiet, allowing Yang to dominate the conversation, but she seemed to be enjoying herself just as much. At least judging from the small smile Yang could not help but notice.

"So, you must be some incredibly big shot to have a limo, huh."

"It's actually my friend's. Well, friend and boss," Blake explained. "I was hired by the Schnee family to be a servant to their second daughter. Servant, maid, cook. Everything except tutor pretty much."

"Sheesh, that must be awful. Must be a super high paying job then with all the chores you have to do."

"Not really. At first it was a lot of work, but Weiss is more of a friend than boss now. Yes, it was rough during the first few months, but I now act more of a friend that's being paid to babysit her, rather than her cleanup crew. It helps that Weiss is incredibly kind and not quick to anger."

Yang let out a whistle, "still jealous. It's just me and my sis back home, so we split the cooking and cleaning and stuff. So I guess I'm also a maid, servant and cook, but I pay for the honour. Heh, look at us two peas in a pod. You think we could pull off a princess and the pauper routine?"

Blake let out a small chuckle, which she blocked from view with her hand. "If you'd be willing to cut your hair and dye it black, I'm open to playing the princess."

Yang smiled and winked. "Never mind! This hair is way too perfect to be cut. Do you know how long it takes to get that 'just rolled out of bed' look?"

The two laughed, stopping in front of a tall brick building with a thatched metal roof.

"And here you are madame wazel. Your stop."

Blake smiled, "I think you meant mademoiselle."

"Honey, I'm good with my hands, not my mouth. Though my ex seems to disagree," Yang winked.

"Thank you for showing me where to go. It was a pleasure meeting you."

"You too. Would it be wrong of me to ask for your number?"

* * *

"So, you have her number?" Ruby asked, leaning on Yang's shoulders. Yang smiled but shook her head.

"Nope! She said it would be a lot harder than a cheesy one liner or two to get her number. But, she did say she would be in town again in a week, so guess who's got date!"

Ruby could only groan. "I go out and somehow make an enemy. You go out and come back with a girlfriend. I must be cursed."

"Probably. But don't worry, mama Yang has enough good fortune for the two of us!"


	12. Fortune

School was not going how Ruby had hoped it would. As she looked over her mark on the final test before midterm, all she could do was frown and sink lower into her seat. Her first failing grade in years. Maybe her first failing grade ever! Ruby sank lower, only her eyes looking over her desk as she tried to hide herself from the world. More importantly, to hide herself from her sister sitting two rows up and one to the right. This was not good. Not good at all.

"Cinder keeping me up all night," she grumbled to nobody in particular. "Mercury and Emerald and their essays and shoe-shining and grrh…" A light growl left her throat without her even realizing it.

She fought off another yawn, losing the same battle she had all week. She had no time to think about how tired she was. Homework was just piling on top of her ever higher without any hope of completion. Not with the number of chores she still had to do for Cinder. And Yang had been working longer hours thanks to her pay being cut after one too many bar brawls.

Or little meaningless scuffles, as Yang so delicately put it.

At least Cinder was being nice enough to let her take on a few more chores to help out. Ruby yawned once more, crumpling her test in her hand and shoving it deep into her pocket.

As soon as the afternoon bell rang, she was outside the school, backpack hooked tightly over both shoulders. Her keychains dangling off the main zipper was bouncing around, softly jingling with each step. Not the usual bounce-step that was familiar, happy Ruby, but the hard pacing of someone with too much on their mind.

Or not enough on their mind. At that moment, only one thought echoed through her head and that was sleep. Beautiful, all encompassing, relaxingly joyous sleep. All she wanted to do at that very moment, was to walk home, take off her shoes, which had been pinching the back of her ankle all day, climb the stairs to the second floor, drop her bag and leave it wherever it landed and plop onto her bed. And by plop, she really meant to fall head-first onto her pillow and somehow have her blankets magically cocoon her without any effort.

But she knew that it was nothing more than a beautiful fantasy. When she got home, she would have exactly fifteen minutes to complete as much homework as she possibly could, before starting on whatever new list of chores Cinder and her lackeys had for her. It was so stressful. She could feel her brain crying for help, but she knew what she had to do.

She had to work.

Ruby had to do whatever Cinder told her to do. It was the only way to save her home and her family. Yang was working so hard for both of them. She had her own dreams and her own friends and yet she was putting them aside in order to work longer and longer hours, just to feed and clothe and house the both of them. It wouldn't be right to Ruby if she did nothing. She had to help out. Be the silent guardian for her sister, just as her sister was the guardian for her.

Her next yawn was interrupted by a pat on the back. "Heya Rubes! How'd your test go?" Yang's cheerful smile brought a tired one out of the younger girl.

"It was fine. I'm going to need to study more for the midterms though. I'm just," her words were taken over by a powerful yawn, "just so tired."

"Easy there Rubes. You should get some more sleep if you're so tired."

"I would if I could. I fell behind on my homework and I've so many chores and-"

"Chores? What chores?" Yang's smile shifted into one of puzzlement.

Ruby tripped mid-step, chastising herself for the slip up thanks to her exhaustion. "I-it's nothing Yang. Just some personal stuff."

Yang gave her a look that told her she did not quite believe the girl, but did not press her further. "If you're completely sure. Remember that you can tell me anything that's going on, right? No matter what, I'm here for you."

"Thanks Yang. I'll be alright. I'll see you tonight after work."

Yang ruffled Ruby's hair.

"I'll be sure to give you a kiss goodnight and pick you up off the floor."

"I fell out of bed one time!" Ruby whined, much to her sister's delight.

"And it was the most adorable thing ever! Ruby Rose, lying on the floor, sucking her thumb with her bum up in the air. I wish I took pictures."

"Thank everything that you didn't. And don't you have work to get to?"

"Right, see ya!"

As Yang ran off with a wave, Ruby was able to return to her thoughts of sleep and how unattainable it was. The rest of the walk home, it was all she could think about.

The front door swung open to an empty and silent home. Ruby much preferred when it was loud and noisy and bustling with activity. The noise made it feel lived in. Made it feel safe. Like a real home for a real family. As she flicked on the kitchen light and placed her bag down on the table, she remembered when it truly was so.

As a second thought, she rushed up to her room and pulled out her red hoodie from her memory box underneath her bed. Putting it on and taking in a deep whiff of the sleeve, her mind drifted to thoughts of her mother, when she had bought that hoodie for her. How she had dragged it all over the floor because it fit her more like a dress with a wedding train, than any shirt. She had loved it, because it was warm and soft and smelled just like her mother. It was one of the few memories she had left of her.

Now, it fit her near perfectly. The sleeves were still a little too long, so she rolled them up to her elbows, but enjoyed the feeling of the hem extending well passed her waist, resting mid-thigh. Pulling the hood up and over her head, she basked in the warm and familiar smelling presence which surrounded her. She sighed happily and descended the stairs once more to get started on as much homework as she could.

That amount turned out to be very little. With the arrival of Mercury and Emerald to a cacophony of continuous ringing from the doorbell, she put down her pencil and gave up on ever catching up on her work. She gave up on even thinking of ever catching up. All she could hope for was that her natural talent of absorbing and remembering knowledge would keep her grades high enough to sway whatever university faculty was looking over her admission.

She opened the door for the two of them, allowing them to step inside without so much as a hello.

"Wow, this place looks like real crap." Were the first words out of Mercuy's mouth, stomping inside with mud covered shoes, his hands going directly to a ceramic vase resting as a center piece to the kitchen table. He flipped it over in his hands, checking it out from every angle.

"Can you please put that down? It's very delicate." Ruby said calmly, letting Emerald place a large bag of dirty clothes into her hands.

Mercury shrugged and put the vase down, leaving Ruby to flinch at the loud noise.

"Cinder would like all these clothes to be clean and folded by tonight at nine. Here is a list of groceries to pick up and put away, and Mercury's left boot is in need of a tune-up. It seems like your last attempt was not up to her satisfaction. The garden also requires pruning and we're supposed to be having guests over tomorrow, so please start marinating all the meats." Emerald tapped the list on top of the pile of laundry. "And don't mess up anything. I'll make sure you repeat everything if you do. And it will be out of your wallet that time."

Ruby nodded, "yes ma'am. I'll start on the laundry right now."

Leaving the two subordinates of Miss Fall alone in her house, she went into the laundry room and began sorting the clothes into whites, blacks and colours, placing the coloured clothes into the washing machine. As she pressed the start button, she looked at the three piles of clothes in front of her as well as the handwritten list. The piles, as well as the list was much shorter than she had expected. She didn't even need to leave the washing machine on the heavy load setting. That meant it could be washed and dried that much faster.

Similarly, the list was only one for shopping. No extra chores added to the end to try and trick her into forgetting something. She couldn't help but let out a tiny smile. For once, she could actually hope for a good night's rest. But first, it was time to buy some groceries.


	13. Misfortune

The soft jazz music playing through the speakers all around the grocery store was pleasing to Ruby as she skipped along carrying her basket filled with juices, spices, meats and vegetables. She hummed along with the sounds of a trumpet, as she read over the final few items on the list. Eggs, heavy cream and salt.

At least that was something normal about Miss Fall. If she could make a task less efficient, she would endeavour to do so. Of course pepper would be at the top of the list and salt at the bottom. No need to organize things. At least eggs and heavy cream were side by side on the shopping list, just as they were in the store.

Heading back down the spices isle, she looked for a small bag of salt. Finding one within her price range, she plopped it into her basket and continued through the rows of isles to the cold foods section. _This is going great!_ Ruby thought to herself with glee, checking her time. _Only two things left and then I'm done here._

The thought made her shiver with anticipation. Looking up over the array of food products to read the titles of what was in each fridge, she let her feet move on their own, paying attention to the words. "Yogurt, nope. Cheese, nope. Frozen veggies, yuk. Ah! Eggs!"

The first egg carton she checked had a cracked egg in it so she moved onto the second one. Seeing them in perfect condition, she loaded the penultimate item into her basket and continued down towards the cream. Suddenly, the world inverted.

The ground was slick with water and soap and her shoe gave way, sliding further than she expected. Ruby gasped as she came tumbling down, her basket flipping over, spilling all their neatly organized contents all around her. The eggs cracked, making a mess of the floor. So too did the salt bag open and the glass container of pepper shatter.

Her head slammed down hard onto the ground, leaving a ringing in her ear. Gently touching her head, she found no external damage. Her hair was just damp from the wet floor, but she was still healthy. Tears unconsciously fell down her cheeks, even as she rose slowly from the floor. She looked around. No wet floor signs. At least Ruby could feel confident that it wasn't her fault-

"What a mess, you insolent brat!"

Ruby spun to see an angry man in a red grocery store vest marching towards her, shaking a finger in her direction. Immediately, Ruby stumbled backwards, heel hitting her now empty basket, sending it flying into the corner with a crash. "I'm sorry! The floor was wet and there was no sign!" Ruby attempted to get out among admonishments from the angry grocery store clerk.

"No sign? No sign! It's right over there you child!" He shouted, pointing behind me where a yellow plastic A-frame that clearly said _Wet Floor_ was standing.

Ruby could only stare at the sign and tremble. It hadn't been there just a second ago. Surely not.

Or had it?

Ruby did not know. She couldn't trust her own memory. She knew she was caught up in the feelings of accomplishment at being nearly complete with the task. Had that simple thing given her rose coloured goggles? She wished she had an answer.

It took promising to help clean up the mess to get her off with just a warning and not needing to pay for all the spilt supplies. It had wasted a lot of time and Ruby was left with running home from the grocery store, bags in tow.

Placing them carefully on the table, she saw that Emerald and Mercury were still there. Mercury was busy resting his feet on the table and leaning his chair back on its hind two legs, picking at his teeth with a finger. Emerald was sitting on the sofa, flipping through channels.

"How was the grocery store, red? Had an adventure?" Mercury chuckled. "Looks like you got some stains on that sweater of yours."

Ruby could barely hear him as she rushed into the laundry room and moved a new load into the washing machine and the other into the dryer. Just as quickly as she arrived, she left. Cleaning up the grocery store had taken much longer than she hoped. She had to prune Miss Fall's garden and do it quickly.

There was no time for relaxing. No time to stop and smell the roses. No time to even laugh at her own joke. Just pruning and preening. Carefully cutting at the extended stems of wilting flowers. At the overgrown leaves and weeds which rose through the perfectly manicured garden. Pick up the rocks and stones which had found their way into the flowerpots, and make sure to water everything.

The sun was beginning its descent, and she still had work to do. But at least that was one more thing checked off on her list. Then she heard growling. "Not again!" She cried out as the neighbourhood dog came barreling into the garden, kicking up plants and shaking flowers of their perfect leaves.

The dog began to dig up a particularly nice section of the garden, sending dirt everywhere around him. Even as Ruby pulled helplessly at his collar, shouting at him to stop, it was no use. He continued to dig and dig.

Flinging dirt everywhere.

With each new flower lifted from the soil, Ruby's heart cracked that much more.

The dog stopped. He placed his head into his newly made hole and picked up a bone covered in the remains of a steak dinner. And with that, he was off. As if nothing at all had happened.

Leaving Ruby standing there, with the fruits of her labour tarnished and beyond recognition. There was only one thing she could do. And with a sniffle and a wipe of her eyes with the sleeve of the sweater her mother had bought her, she knelt down and got to work.

* * *

The front door opened revealing a shivering and torn up Ruby. Her face and hands were covered in scraped and dirt, and soil covered each of her fingernails. Her bright silver eyes were a shade darker, revealing just how truly exhausted she was.

"Sup Red." Mercury said calmly, "I ate your dinner for you. Left the broccoli though. I'm more of a cauliflower man myself."

Ruby took over her shoes and dragged herself to the kitchen. "I hate broccoli," she muttered.

Emerald was still lazing away in front of the television, looking bored out of her mind. Then Emerald caught a glance at the young girl and a small smiled perked her lips.

"My dear Ruby," her voice took on the manner of someone trying to copy the voice of Cinder Fall. At least that's how Ruby would have described it. It was not nearly as sweet and kind as Miss Fall's pretended to be. Hers was just frightening. Ruby shuddered.

"You look so dirty! And those rags of yours. All full of holes and stained through!" Emerald stood from her spot on the sofa, making her way towards Ruby with each pointed word, her eyes not leaving the younger girl's. "Those really do need to be fixed. I would hate to see any person renting property from Miss Fall dressed like such a bum. A homeless hoodlum if you will."

"She looks just like gutter-you did." Mercury quipped, earning a glare from his partner.

"Anyways, as I was saying, Ruby. Allow me to help you with that sweater of yours."

Ruby took a step back, hugging herself tightly. "Th-that's alright. I can put it in the wash later and I'll have the holes sewed up again in no time. It'll be good as new. I promise!" Her voice quivered, realizing she walked back into a corner.

Emerald smiled as she towered over her.

"Now, how about I help you." She put a finger in one of the small rips along the sleeve. With a quick tug, the fabric shredded.

"Woops! Let me try again."

"No! Please don't! Stop! It's my mother's!" Emerald's smile was beyond wicked as she chose another hole and pulled. Then another. And another.

Then with both hands, she stretched out the collar, the fabric snapping.

"Oh, it seems like I might have ripped it a little." A self-satisfied smirk. "I guess Mercury and I will be on our way. Don't forget about preparing the food for tomorrow's dinner."

The door closed quietly, with nothing more than a soft and gentle click, leaving Ruby standing there in the corner of her own house, shivering. Silent tears fell in a torrent of emotions. The last remnant of her mother had been torn to pieces. The red fabrics lay around her in uneven and messy tatters. The collar hung off one of her shoulders, stretched beyond recognition.

Ruby slumped to the ground.

Her mind was blank. Bereft of any ideas or hopes or dreams. There was nothing she could think to do. There was nothing she wanted to do. So, she did the only thing left.

In the house once owned by her loving mother and father. The place she felt the happiest and safest, with memories of a happy and peaceful childhood. In the very spot she had hugged her mother before she left for her work.

Ruby Rose cried.


	14. Preparation

Blake walked into Weiss's room and closed the door behind her, trying not to interrupt her master and friend. Weiss stood at her desk, holding a half-finished piece of canvas out at arm's length in front of her, seemingly deep in thought. So, Blake remained still, waiting for Weiss to finish with whatever was running through her mind.

Finally, with a long, almost sad breath, Weiss lowered her hands, carefully folding the piece of canvas. All before nearly yelping in fright at the sight of Blake.

"Blake! How long were you there for?" Weiss said the moment she calmed down enough to get a word out. Her breathing was still ragged, and a hand was on her chest, trying desperately to calm her rapidly beating heart.

"Not long." Blake's reply was curt. There was a slimmer of a grin on her lips. Weiss knew she was mentally high fiving herself. "It looks like you added more to your painting."

Weiss turned to look at her hands, now holding the scrunched-up canvas.

"I guess so. I worked a little bit on it last night. It only just dried so I… I wanted to take another look at it." Carefully, Blake stepped up to Weiss, taking the canvas from her hands to take her own look at the forever-unfinished painting.

"Is that more silver I see?"

Weiss nodded. "Silver and grey. It's really all the paint I had left. I wanted red, but, well you remember what happened. I don't know. It seems like my dream face now has more silver in it than it had before."

Blake nodded, holding out at arm's length herself. Weiss stood behind her to get a better view.

"Not sure I like the shape of the chin. It looks to square," Weiss critiqued. "It should be rounder. More…"

"Feminine?"

"Possibly... I don't know. Maybe I'll figure it out tonight. Or over this weekend. Lots of new faces are coming over, so there will be plenty of opportunity for my subconscious to blend new facial features."

"Speaking of this weekend, are you ready?"

Weiss shook her head. "No. Well, everything has been arranged and the judges chosen, the guest list for the ball has been set in stone for weeks now and all the decorations and décor are long since strung up. So, in that sense I am ready. Just… maybe not to meet my future husband to be. I really hope Cardin isn't as good as mother and father say he is."

Weiss groaned and sunk to the floor, leaning against her room's floor-to-ceiling window. "Why did I decide to make it a blind judging? If I know it's his sword, I could just eliminate it right away."

"or your mother could force you to make it the winner on the spot." Blake chimed in helpfully.

"I guess you have a point."

"But, now that we're on the topic of the festival, can I ask you a small favour?"

"I'm not allowed to invite guests of your… heritage. I'm sorry, but that was something my father would not budge on."

Blake smiled at her friend's words. She was so grateful that Weiss was nothing like her parents in the racism department. Maybe just as high-strung and possibly egotistical at times, but in the best of ways of course.

"Thanks, but that's not really what I meant. I really do understand and thank you for trying anyways. It's actually a favour from Yang that I'm sort of passing on."

"Yang? That girl you've been seeing?" Weiss smirked at the growing redness creeping up Blake's neck and touching her cheeks.

"Yes, her." The raven-haired girl stammered out, trying desperately to force the blush from her face.

And failing miserably.

"So, what can I do for this girlfriend of yours."

"She's not my girlfriend! She hasn't asked to make it official yet." She shot in quickly, only making Weiss's smirk grow.

"Uh huh."

Blake shook her head, returning back to the subject at hand. "A-anyways. Yang's little sister is going to be entering the competition. I-I know that she doesn't come from the richest of families. Both Yang and Ruby work on top of school. Well, Yang works, Ruby does maintenance on hunter's gear in order to fund her… never mind, that's not really what's important here. I told Yang about how I worked for the Schnee family and she wondered if it was possible to get a ride from Patch for her sister."

"She wants me to drive her to my own house?"

"Not her, her sister. And not you drive. Just to allow me to take one of your family's cars for a few hours so I can go pick her up and drop her back home afterwards. I know how much Yang struggled to even afford the price of admission to the festival. And I know it's a huge request, especially for someone that you don't even know. But, I promised Yang I would ask, no matter how unlikely it may be."

"You really like this Yang girl."

"She's brutish, talks non-stop and makes puns like you would not believe. It is nearly impossible to get any peace and quite when I'm around her."

"And yet you really like this Yang girl." Weiss repeated, in the same, half-shocked, half-not-at-all-surprised sort of way. She waited for Blake to nodded, her eyes directed at the floor in front of her.

"I think I do. She's really caring. Especially towards her little sister. There's something I really admire about that."

"Then of course. I'll call Klein to ensure a limo is available."

Blake's head spun faster than Weiss would have thought possible.

"What? I can't drive a limousine."

"Who said anything about you driving? You can go along for the ride, but I don't expect you to drive the thing." Weiss grinned, "also, why don't I recoup the fee for… Ruby was it? For Ruby's admission fee. It's the least I can do for my best friend's girlfriend's sister. Wow, I did not think I would ever be uttering those words in my lifetime."

"You really don't have to do so much."

Weiss flicked her hand out, shrugging off the notion. "Please, I'm rich. I can do anything I'd like with my own money. And besides, the Schnee Estate has seven limousines and their drivers on retainer. Blake, there are four of us in total. Why would we need seven limousines for four people?"

"I think you told me it was so a different family couldn't hire them."

"That just proves how rich we are! We are paying for useless staff to spite another family. Please, just accept these gifts. Maybe introduce me to Yang when you next see her. I really do wish to meet the girl who stole your heart."

Blake gave Weiss a shy smile. One which Weiss happily returned. Once more Weiss was amazed at how much her life had changed for the better since she made a friend. It only briefly flickered through her mind that Blake's girlfriend could take that friendship away from her, but it was a fleeting thought. At least she hoped it was.

 _There's no way Blake having a girlfriend would ruin our relationship, right?_ She asked herself, nervousness masked beneath her practiced smile. _Yang will just become another friend. Right. Just another friend._

"I know a fake smile when I see one."

"Damn my expressionless face," Weiss scowled. "It's just me overthinking things. Nothing to worry about. Come on."

Weiss stood up, using Blake's shoulder for support. Helping Blake to her feat, the two girls left Weiss's room and walked down the hallways of Schnee Manor. They were filled with paintings of Schnees long past and memorabilia which lauded the greatness of the Schnee name. It made Weiss mentally gag. A real noble family wouldn't need displays like these. When Weiss was in charge, she would get rid of all these knickknacks. No, they would not be replaced by the odd assortments and arrays belonging to a husband her mother chose for her. Nor one chosen by her father.

Her hallways would remain empty. Maybe a trophy here or there from whatever her child would do; because of course any child of Weiss's would be great at whatever she sets her mind to. Like mother, like daughter obviously.

Finally, they reached the doors to the central plaza of the manor. It was a large space, filled with tables set up as workbenches. Tools of every shape and size, many with names that Weiss did not even know, were all in boxes underneath the tables. Electrical cables ran across the ground, crossing each other and turning the carefully laid cobblestone floors into a carpet of rubber. Rows of cans of oil, grease and other lubricants lined the floor opposite them. As did metal machines. Lathes, mills, band-saws, electric sanders, dust containers and a high-pressure furnace filled out the rest of the available space.

Those watching the competition would have to watch from inside the house, through the massive windows which lined the hallways around the central plaza. Weiss had already found the perfect spot to watch from. Right between her grandfather's breach-loading rifle and a perfectly shaped rose bush. It would allow her to see everyone in action. Hopefully it would be enough to tell who was making what weapon.

Blake patted her on the shoulder. "Guess we will be meeting the future Mister or Missus Schnee right here this weekend."

Weiss nodded slowly. "I guess so. But I know one thing's for sure.

"No way in hell will it be that Cardin Winchester."


	15. Bippity Boppity Boo

An open door brought in the frigid night air and the sound of a pleased blonde woman. "I got some great news for you! And some bad news, but the good news is better!"

Yang took off her jacket and hung it on the rack. Each shoe came off with a pleased sigh of "that feels awesome." It was only after Yang had fully relaxed herself, did she hear the whimpering and continued sobbing nearby. At once she spun around to see her sister curled up in the corner.

The first thing Yang noticed was the amount of dirt on the girl. It smudged her cheeks and coated her hands. While she could not see her nails, she knew they must be just as filthy. Her pants had grass stains and mud stains, especially around the knees as if she spent hours digging in the ground. Even Ruby's red sweater was covered- Yang gasped, quickly rushing over to her sister. Scattered remains of the large red sweater which had once belonged to their mother surrounded the both of them. What Ruby still wore was a mockery.

Tears and loose threads hung off each arm and across the back of the shirt. There were frayed knots and the collar had slipped off one of Ruby's shoulders. Yang hugged Ruby tightly, trying to sooth the poor girl only for Ruby to burst out into louder sobs. Yang felt wetness on her shoulder. Her sister's arms were loose around her waist, but Yang knew better than to let go.

"Shh… Shh… It's alright. I'm here for you." Yang soothed, gently stroking her short hair and rubbing calming circles along her back.

Ruby's whimpers continued. "Mom is gone for good."

"It's alright," Yang cooed. "I'm here for you. Mom will never leave you for good. I promise."

This brought on a new round of tears. The young girl shook in her sister's arms, a leaf trembling against a wintry night. Yang had no more words. She was lost with how to help her. It was shocking. She knew she had to do something, but, feeling the rent fabric between her fingers, she was at a loss. She felt liquid pool in her eyes, but she quickly blinked it back. No, now was a time to be strong. Strong for her baby sister.

Ever so slowly, the aching and crying receded. The young girl sniffled loudly, pulling back slightly for her big sister to wipe at her eyes with the clean parts on the back of her hands. Then she leaned in, to hug Yang once more, grasping tight and pouring every bit of emotion she could into it.

"I want my mommy." She whispered. Yang squeezed harder. "Daddy too."

"I love you Rubes. Mom and dad did too. Never forget that."

The room was silent once more, save for the sounds of cold wind rustling through the branches of the trees and swishing the curtains inside.

"Yang?"

"Yes, Rubes?"

"Can you close the door? It's kind of cold."

Yang chuckled. Ruby did too, between sniffles. With one final sniffle and a hiccup, Ruby pulled away, composing herself as Yang shut the front door.

"Tell me what happened Ruby. Please." Yang voice was calm and motherly. Ruby withdrew, but their eyes remained focused on each other. "Please Ruby."

And so, Ruby Rose told her sister everything. About Cinder and her threat. About the work and chores she did every day when Yang was away at work. How Ruby was doing everything she could to help pay rent. About how her grades were slipping. About how far behind in her homework she was.

About that night.

As Ruby spoke, Yang grew quieter. Her eyes narrowed further and a scowl appeared on her lips. Once her sister finished, detailing Emerald's attack on their mother's sweater, she burst to her feet. Red hot anger clouding her vision.

"I am going to kill Cinder and her pets!" Yang shouted, fists clenched.

"Yang no!" Ruby tried, grasping onto Yang's shirt, trying to stop her from reaching for the doorknob.

"Look at what they did to you. They forced you to work!"

"I chose to work!"

"No. You were threatened. You worked for Cinder for months without any reward. You think she told me about any reduction in rent? Huh? Ruby. You worked for that… that… monster! For months! And it's bad enough that she treated you like a slave, but this takes the cake."

"If you do anything to her we might lose the house." Ruby whispered as her sister blazed furiously.

Her words did the trick though.

At once, Yang calmed herself, turning to look at the redheaded girl beside her. She sighed in defeat.

"You're right. As usual. But you're done working for her."

"I am." Ruby repeated. Yang nodded.

"I'll get a broom."

The floor was cleaned quickly, and Ruby took a bath, while Yang did what she could to remove any stains from Ruby's sweater. But, as good as Yang was at sewing and stain removal, there was just no fixing that red sweater. As she heard the sounds of the water stop and the telltale signs of Ruby stepping out of the tub, she had a solution.

It was not a perfect one, far from it. But it was something.

Something so Ruby would always have her mother with her.

There was a knock at her bedroom door. Ruby, wrapped in a much too large towel walked inside as Yang worked.

"You said you had some good and bad news?"

"Oh, right. I forgot about that. Which do you want to hear first?"

Ruby sighed. "I guess the bad. I just want it out of the way."

"You remember our meeting with Beacon U's staff? The one for our scholarships?"

"Ya?" Ruby feared the worst. "D-did something happen? Are they not going to give us a chance for scholarships anymore?"

"No, no. Nothing like that. Just, the meeting date has been scheduled for this weekend. It's the day of the competition."

Ruby's head dropped. "Oh. You're going to have to prepare the house for their arrival. Get our papers in order, make sure my report cards are ready. Yours too. Does that mean…" She couldn't bring herself to say it.

Yang shook her head with a smile. "That's the good news. So, I asked Blake for some help. And, she really pulled through. Her boss is Weiss Schnee. I told you I was going to get you a rad ride to the party. You will be taking a limo there and back. And more, Weiss is paying your entry fee."

Ruby could not hold back her excitement. Her silver eyes lit up and she jumped into her sister's arms, still wrapped up in that towel. "This is incredible!"

"Blake is going to drive you there Saturday morning and drive you home Saturday night. Remember, the meeting will start at 8 o'clock sharp. I was told if either of us isn't there, then we won't be able to get the scholarships, no exceptions. That means you need to be back in that limo when the clock strikes six. Any later and you will miss the meeting. Is that understood?"

"Yes Yang. Thank you so so SO so much!"

"Anytime Rubiroo. And thank Blake and Weiss for me too."

Ruby giggled. "I can't wait to meet your girlfriend. I always wanted to try out the little sister speech."

"Little sister speech?"

"it's like the big sister speech, but instead of me threatening death on them for harming you, I pretend to cry and give them the puppy dog eyes until they promise to be good to you."

"Hey!" Yang laughed, "you cheeky girl. Oh, I have one more surprise for you. It's a bit more good news actually. Well, it's not so much news as a gift. Still good though. No, it's great!"

"Yang-"

"I would even go so far as to say this will make all your wishes come true-"

"Yang! You're pulling a Ruby."

"Oh sorry. Well, do you remember that music toy you were telling me about during the festival in Vale? Well, I was walking home on a different route than normal and guess what I found?"

"No."

"Happy very late birthday Ruby."

Yang held out the wooden toy. Ruby took it from her in both hands, treating it like a treasure worth of fortune. Ever so quietly, she rolled the wooden cylinder, listening to the faint click-clack it was making. She almost burst into tears then and there.

Joy was her only expression.

"This is what I've needed. Can I- can I go to my workshop? I have so many ideas! And I only have a few days to prepare!"

Yang nodded, reminding her to put on some clothes first, which she sheepishly agreed to and sped out of the room.

Watching from her bedroom window as her sister, wrapped up tightly in two pairs of sweatpants and one of Yang's heavy wool sweatshirts, brave the cold to reach the safety of her workshop, Yang could only smile. She knew Ruby would be alright. She was a brave girl. The bravest even.

Her eyes turned to the thin strands of red which had once been Summer Rose's and then Ruby Rose's sweater. Ruby had a competition to prepare for. And Yang; she had her own work as well.


	16. The Princess and the Pauper

One would expect that Ruby's first limousine ride would be a quite boisterous affair. But, sitting on those plush leather seats, surrounded by closed bottles of alcohol more expensive than the Xiao-Long house, it was eerily silent.

"Ruby, I refuse to look at you when you're making that face. Yang already warned me about the power pout." Blake admonished, licking a finger and flipping to the next page of her book.

To Blake, the silent car ride, minus the occasional bounce or turning signal blinker noise, was perfectly acceptable all things considered. To a certain girl who was hoping to force Yang's "girlfriend-but-not-a-girlfriend (she hasn't asked me yet!)" into submission, it was becoming a bit too quiet. Ruby did have to admit it. This girl was good. Almost worthy of a little-sister's seal of approval.

Rather than give up, Ruby scooched up closer to her sister's girlfriend and turned her puppy-dog eyes up to eleven. She even threw in a small whine and a tear for good measure. There was no way anybody would be immune to Ruby.

Blake's eyes continued to scan the pages of her book, her feline ear twitching in annoyance.

Ruby pressed herself into the girl, hand pushing into her thigh and face right up to Blake's cheek. The moment she saw Blake's eyes flicker towards her own, Ruby mentally cheered, knowing she had won.

"Ugh! Fine, you win." Blake closed her book, tossing it beside her. "I don't know how, but you managed to weaponize cuteness just as well as Weiss's glare."

"Yang says it's my superpower. That, and weapon-smithing." Ruby shrugged, finally returning to her own seat with a large smile plastered on her face.

"Are you really that good?"

"I don't know. I've never really met anybody who makes weapons before. My father said I was good. Yang, too. And I have that interview with Beacon University coming up super soon, but that's it."

"An interview for Beacon at your age is still an impressive feat." Blake replied.

After that, the conversation seemed to die down, neither knowing what to say next. Neither being the most talkative sort. Ruby looked out the window, watching as the scenery changed from the regular houses or tall office buildings to trees and meadow and back, as they passed by town and city after town and city. It did not take long for the houses to start getting much larger. Then much, much larger. Until, Ruby was unsure if the houses should be called houses or simply, castles. The word 'mansion' seemed way too small for places like these.

"Ten more minutes until we reach the estate, Miss Ruby. Miss Blake." Said the driver in a posh voice which made Ruby giggle.

She glanced at Blake, knowing her time was running out. She didn't do anything she needed to! She was supposed to ask Blake what her favourite colour was, and how much she liked Yang and even if she was willing to learn to bake cookies. All that preparation, down the drain.

"What's your favourite cookie colour?" Ruby let out, mixing up two questions.

Blake smirked at her. "Cookie colour? Probably brown?"

"I mean, what's your favourite cookie and then favourite colour."

"Sure Red. Definitely what you meant."

"Blake!" Ruby whined, crossing her arms and pouting that was eerily reminiscent of her elder sister.

"I enjoy purple. And chocolate-almond is my preferred cookie."

Ruby hummed in appreciation. Good choices. No extra bonus points for choosing red, but she didn't lose any for her choice in cookie. As Ruby opened her mouth to ask another series of questions, the driver grunted, turning her attention back to the limousine's windows.

Very fancy cars lined the street, leading up to what was most likely the biggest castle on the block. Their limo pulled up straight to the closed gate. After a minute of the driver talking to whomever was on the other side of the speaker, the gate opened inwards and the limo drove through.

Blake was leaning back in her seat, watching Ruby's reactions to the place she worked. The driveway was long, much longer than it truly needed to be, having been designed to zig-zag down the path, lined with statues and fountains and freshly mown green grass. The soft sounds of orchestral music was being played along the way, music coming from carefully placed and hidden speakers designed to look like stones.

Normally, the speakers would be silent, but this day being a festival of sorts, the atmosphere for wealth and sophistication was in full swing. Ruby felt completely underdressed. Taking in a big gulp of air, she bent down between her legs where her backpack was. Zipping open the largest section, she pulled out a hoodie. It was red, like so many others, and a little long on her just how she liked. Putting it on and rolling the sleeves up to her elbows, she frowned.

No matter how much she wanted, it wasn't her favourite hoodie. Her lucky hoodie. The driver opened up the door for her and she carefully stepped outside, following Blake. Looking around at the courtyard and all the people; all the fancily dressed people, she could only shudder.

She really needed some luck right about now. She gaze up into the clouds which lightly drifted through the sky. "Please, please give me some luck. I could really use it today," She silently pleaded with whatever higher powers there were.

"Miss Belladonna. It is so good you returned on time. This must be your girlfriend's younger sis-" The high-pitched, respectful tone immediately stopped.

Ruby had just enough time to pull her thoughts from the clouds and face the girl in front of her to realize why she had stopped.

Thanks a lot luck. No good rotten fate.

"Hey, it's you!" Ruby said, wide eyed and pointing at the frowning white haired girl. She remembered her from the marketplace all those weeks ago! they had bumped into each other and she missed out on buying her noise-maker. And of course, she spilt paint. On... her...

"Eep!" Ruby let out as the full memory returned to her. "I'm so sorry!"

"You!" Weiss shouted, glaring daggers at the girl across from her. "Do you know how long it took to remove red paint from me! Let alone my clothes. They are all garbage."

"I'm sorry. I didn't see you and I was running in one direction and you were running in the other and it was crowded and my mind was just so focused on buying something before someone else could get it and I didn't see you there!" A sudden thought broke through Ruby's ramblings. "Haven't we already yelled at each other about that already?"

Weiss scowled, "it looks like you could still us another scolding or two."

"Hey! I said I was sorry, princess."

"It's heiress actually" Blake chimed in helpfully.

"That's not helpful, right now, Blake." Ruby grumbled.

"Maybe next time you will learn to watch where you are going," Weiss nodded magnanimously.

"And maybe you will learn to not run with an open jar of paint!"

Blake could only barely catch herself before she broke into laughter. It did however not silence a snort which Weiss seemed to take offense to.

"Why, I- well... you... hmmph!" Weiss's stuttering ended with a stomp of her foot. "You're just lucky I already paid for your admissions."

With that, Weiss left in the direction she came from, leaving a stunned and confused Ruby in her wake.

"Was that..."

Blake nodded at Ruby's partial question. "That, Red, was Weiss Schnee. The person who set up this whole competition. And the girl who paid for your admission to compete and loaned you the limo to get here."

"She paid for my ticket?"

"She did."

"She didn't know who I was before offering to do that?"

"All she knew was that I'm dating your sister. Erm- I mean, going on dates with your sister," Blake backtracked, pink touching her cheeks.

"She doesn't like me very much, does she."

"Nope."

Ruby groaned. Loud enough that a few other guests and competitors glanced her way. This was not going the way she was hoping it would. She was hoping to make a good first impression! No, she wanted her first impression to Weiss, to be her amazingly perfect weapon she was going to make. Not... this. Of course, paint girl had to be Weiss Schnee. And even more than that, paint girl had to be Yang's girlfriend's best friend.

"Good job Ruby," she admonished.

Blake gave her a gentle pat on the back and a small push so that they started heading towards the mansion's side entrance, where all the competitors were using to reach the inner plaza and location of the actual event. "Don't worry Ruby. First impressions aren't everything. Neither are second impressions," Blake added.

"Yang always said to try and make a good first impression," Ruby mumbled, her eyes downcast, allowing Blake to guide her wherever.

"Weiss isn't that bad. A little annoyed that she missed out on the paint though. The clothes don't matter to much for her. Have you seen this place? Don't worry, she's not lacking for stuff."

Ruby giggled a little.

"You just need to keep apologizing until it sticks in that pretty little head of hers and she'll come around. She's much nicer than she lets on. Just impress her with your weapon-smithing skills and all will be forgiven. And if all else fails, just power pout and you're golden."

This brought the two girls to laughter.

"Thanks Blake, that really helped. I'm going to go check-in and set up. I'll apologize again when I eventually bump into her... again. Oh, and Blake? Ask Yang to be your girlfriend. She's been waiting for you to make the first move."


	17. And the Game Begins

Checking in was quick and painless and only filled with a small amount of stuttering and mumbling from Ruby. And Ruby only had to practice what she wanted to say for five minutes before it was her turn! Truly a wondrous day for the young Rose.

An attendant led her to her table, placing a placard with a number which matched her lanyard onto it so that those watching the event could determine who was who amongst the noise of machinery. There wasn't too much for Ruby to prepare, in all. All major tools were provided, as well as most minor ones. There were three hammers; a large metal one, a small metal one and a large rubber mallet, along with screw drivers of varying heads, a soldering gun, welding torches, pens, pencils, rulers and anything else Ruby could think of. And what wasn't on the table or in the side-area for larger machining, there was a small notebook to write down what was needed and give to any of the numerous attendants to place in a rush order. Ruby had to whistle in appreciation. She loved her small shed in the back of her house, but what she wouldn't give to have even half this stuff.

All top of the line gear and each more expensive than the last. And it was for a competition that even 'peasants' like her could participate.

Ruby quickly rearranged her place, placing the pens and pencils closer to the front, and the welding torches towards the back. If all went according to plan, little to no welding was going to be needed at all. She pulled out her notebook which had the basic sketches and measurements she wanted and placed it down as well, flipping to the front page and making sure no pages were missing. Finally, came two cylindrical objects, one of wood and the other of thin mild steel. The original music toy and her metallic proof of concept she had been working for hours to perfect.

And with that, fifteen minutes later she was ready for the competition to begin… In one hour.

Curse her impeccable speed and efficiency! But it did mean more time to wander around the estate. Or at least to wander around the parts of the estate that weren't cordoned off. And so, Ruby left the central grounds and walked into the halls, only stopping briefly to admire the rose bush which was in full bloom. It was her favourite flower, and her last name was only three-quarters of the reason why it was so.

The tour-able part of the estate itself, from what the many maps around the courtyard explained, was made up of four primary areas: the central plaza where the competition was to be held, the main hall where the ball was going to be for the higher-class guests and the winner of the event whoever it was, the dining hall and the front driveway. That wasn't to be confused with the back driveway or western driveway, because of course the Schnees and their retinue had enough cars to fill up three driveways with space left over.

Having already seen the central plaza and arriving through the front driveway, there were only two places left worth exploring. And only one of those options had the potential to find cookies. Reading the map carefully to memorize the directions, she set off on her little adventure. It had been a while since she had the opportunity to truly explore somewhere brand new. Most often it was just the forest and creek around her house. That was, when she even had time to go exploring, which wasn't often thanks to her role as Cinder's lacky.

Old role, she had to remind herself with a small smile, growing larger as she repeated the thought again and again. It had been a waste. Cinder hadn't even kept her end of the bargain. She didn't reduce the rent on Yang or anything.

But Torchwick hadn't stolen anything from them while she was working for her, there was that. Her smile turned into a frown. If she stopped helping Cinder by doing her chores, would Torchwick return to stealing their few remaining possessions? Or would the worst happen and their family home burn down?

No, those thoughts were for another time. Now was not the time nor place to start psyching herself out. She was going to do the best she could and make a sword that would put Crescent Rose to shame.

Well, maybe not that good. Her baby was of course, the epitome of perfection. Even though it did have a loose gear. And a spring which kept popping out of place whenever she spun too quickly. Or a blade which would sometimes forget to retract properly and chip itself.

Okay, so Crescent Rose wasn't the most absolutely perfect weapon, yet! But it was getting there. For now, it was up to Ruby to make Weiss Schnee the most perfect weapon. One that befitted a girl as… something as she was. What was Weiss? Rich? Yes, but if she wanted a weapon that expressed her wealth, she would have had one custom made by the best of the best. Nice? No, not really. At least based on her interaction with her. Speaking of, she would have to find the girl and apologize for the paint incident. Hopefully her weapon-smithing could do most of the apologizing for her.

By the end of the day, Weiss was going to be all 'Ruby Rose, your skills are so amazing I just want to be your bestest friend ever.'

And now she was lost. Where even was she? She didn't remember seeing this part of the estate on that map. Was she supposed to make a left then a right at the knight armour? Or was it a left then a second left? She knew she had to turn left first. Did she even do that, or had she just wandered straight through a room without even glancing towards the direction she had been meaning to go?

"Hello?" She tried. There had to be somebody nearby. Maybe a butler or maid or something to point her in the right direction. Preferably not with a scolding. And maybe a tray of cookies. "Anybody there?"

Ruby opened a door and peaked inside. Empty aside for the white bed and white desk. "Huh, must be a guest room."

Shutting it, she checked the room next door. A very similar setup, but this one also held a crystal chandelier.

"How many extra rooms does this place have?" Ruby asked herself. Her own small home had an extra room in the basement for guests, but as she checked a third room and finding a near identical setup to the previous ones, it was starting to get excessive.

"I think I'm a little lost." She called out. How could there be nobody there? And why was there no fancy ropes or anything to block off parts of the building?

There had been a thin string which she ducked under but… oh. Okay, Ruby just wasn't paying enough attention to her surroundings again. This was her own fault. But, it was their fault for using string instead of fancy cushioned ropes. Or at least a sign or something.

"Hell-" Ruby paused as she heard voices.

Straining to gauge the direction they were coming from, she went down a hallway and placed an ear on a door. No, not this one. She waited again for the voices to return, then tried the door across from her. Again, no such luck. On the third try, she found them. Then wished she hadn't.

"-how dare you speak to your father that way," came a gravelly voice, laced with anger.

"I had not meant to speak so harshly," said a quieter, more feminine voice, laced with very much the same anger. "but I will not be breaking the rules of my own event just to ensure victory for the man of your choosing. It was agreed by you, mother and I that it will be a blind vote. The judges and I can watch the contestants build their weapons, but none of them will be labelled with any of their own names, nor will we be allowed to see their final assembly."

"You will find out which one was created by that Winchester boy and he will be named victor."

"Even mother has yet to bring up Cardin. Why are you so insistent on me breaking the rules for his sake? Isn't he supposed to be a gifted weapon-smith?"

"This has less to do with that boy you will marry and more with your lack of accepting your role and duty as my daughter."

"I apologize, but I still believe it would be best to maintain course."

The door in front of Ruby opened to a girl in white… everything. Straight white hair fell from her head and over one shoulder, descending well passed her chest. White elastics were on her wrist to tie up hair into a fancy style. White high heels covered her feet, bringing the girl to stand the same height that Ruby did. Her white dress sparkled with glints of light blue; the only real bit of colour in her entire wardrobe. It matched her eyes.

The two girls stared at one another, both shocked for very different reasons. And then, the world came crashing back to reality as the male voice, Weiss's father, interrupted them, "Weiss, is there a problem?"

"Sorr-" Ruby could barely finish her apology before a hand clamped down on her face as Weiss pulled her towards her with wide eyes and a finger on her own lips. Looking over, she noticed a shadow moving in the room. Then back at Weiss, her head in an almost imperceptible shake.

Ruby nodded.

"N-nothing's wrong. Just… wondering where the nearest servant is," Weiss called back to him, still entirely focused on the girl in the red hoodie in front of her. "I will… take what you had said into consideration, father."

"See to it that you do. You are mine Weiss. Even with the freedoms we allow you, remember that fact."

As the door closed, Weiss dropped her hands and sighed in relief. Her body trembled as her excess nerves slowly left her. Then her eyes darted up to the redhead in front of her. Silver and blue locked on each other once again, though Weiss's gaze quickly took in the rest of the girl she had just been clinging to.

"And what do you think you're doing here?"


	18. Rules and Added Caveats

Running into that no good, paint spilling child of a girl again had not been how she had wanted the morning to go. No, Weiss had planned everything out perfectly in her head. She had already done the easy part of providing transportation for Blake and her girlfriend's sister, as well as a ticket to the very event that she was hosting. Then, it would have been a simple manner of introductions between the two of them, maybe some accepting of her thanks or even some awe if that was the sort of person that sister was. Then, Weiss would have ingratiated herself with the sister enough so that her kind words would reach Blake's girlfriend and the two could become unlikely friends.

A little bit on the more complex side, she had to admit, but it was a rushed plan. Made only in the time between Blake left to pick up the girl and then returning to the estate. And she did have other things on her mind after all. Such as what the sister was like. Blake had said how beautiful her girlfriend was; was her sister the same? More so, what was the reason that she had entered into this competition in the first place?

Oh, she knew so many rich kids with some knack for weapon-smithing who only wished to compete in this event to get closer to her. Her or her father. Or even her mother in some rare, foolish occurrences. There were some who believed it would be worthwhile to use this as a means to join the Schnee family. Some wished for prize money, even though the reward was quite small, the date with Weiss could theoretically be exchanged for an additional sum. Those were the most foolhardy of the lot of them.

What was this sister like? Was she there for Weiss? Or purely for the money? Weiss knew how much they needed it. How poor could these people be, not being able to afford a measly ticket to this event? The cost was not that expensive, was it? It was true that most of the competitors were among the upper class and moved in similar circles to herself, but they _had_ been the first to know about the competition, so it made sense for them to hold the greatest portion of tickets.

Either way, Weiss was confident in her ability to ingratiate herself with this sister and end up with some new friends. But mostly, it would show Blake that she could be friendly with others and so the two of them could remain best friends.

But like always, plans fail at first contact. In this case, that contact was quite literal though it had happened some weeks before. It was the paint girl. That complete and utter fool of a dolt whom had not looked where she was going and had the audacity to yell at her for missing out on a little toy. Completely unapologetic for spilling red paint all over her dress. Had she any idea how much it had been worth? More than her entire house, most likely. But no, it wasn't truly the cost of the dress which had bothered her, but the lack of red paint which had come from their tussle. It was hard enough to purchase paint supplies without her parents knowledge. And she was so close to coming out of that incredible fair with a perfect can of colour that she had wanted to add to her painting for a long time.

That girl. Weiss had left their second argument in a huff. "What right did she have to say such things? 'And maybe you will learn to not run with an open jar of paint' my butt!" She was too angry to care about her lack of propriety as she stomped away from that girl and her best friend.

A best friend who was trying to hold back her silent laughter. And why were they friends in the first place? Too embroiled in annoyance to truly answer that, she went on her way, moving past silly attempts at introductions or conversation by the young rich male competitors of her contest.

Weiss could not believe the gall of that girl. Weiss had not only allowed her to ride in a limo to the competition but had also paid for her ticket to the thing. Where was the respect? Where was the gratitude?

"Ms. Schnee," the voice of a wandering attendant interrupted her deluge of thoughts.

Pausing, she shook her head to remove said girl from her head and put a well-practiced smile on her face. "Yes? Is there something you need?"

The attendant spoke quickly, "Lord Schnee wishes to speak with you in the tertiary library at your earliest convenience."

Weiss sighed. 'Earliest convenience' often meant 'right now and don't be late' to her parents. It was always at their convenience. Anything less than immediately was tantamount to disrespect in their eyes. For their employees and business partners, but also for her and her sister.

"Thank you, I shall be on my way. Please return to whatever you had been doing prior."

"As you wish, miss." The attendant nodded and scurried off in the opposite direction.

Weiss sighed. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately. Sighing to her mother and her constant remarks about marriage. Sighing to her father and his continuous stream of critiques and criticisms, all to get her ready to be 'the perfect wife to whomever he chose and the perfect heiress'. And of course, sighing to her staff whom she was fairly certain saw her as a younger version of both her parents. There was only Blake -And Winter- who didn't treat her like someone who needed to be perfect in everything, while simultaneously coddled. And even with Winter, there was still the Schnee need to be perfect.

But, as Schnee has no time to wallow in self-pity. Weiss went straight to the tertiary library, pausing only to speak quick words to her passing guests, and truly, only the important ones. Important to her father and mother and their ever-growing business empire of course. Not to her. All of these people could rot for all she cared. As long as one of them kept her from dating and marrying Cardin Winchester.

She knocked twice on the door and waited for her father's signal to enter. It came and she did, closing to quietly behind her, curtsying politely to him.

"Please, have a seat." He gestured to the chair across from him with eyes of firm resolve.

It was an order. Everything he said, regardless of the pleasantries accompanying it often were. She sat slowly, fixing the wrinkles in her dress.

"Is there anything I can do for you, father?"

"Yes, I would like to discuss with you the means by which you are to be deciding on a winner for your… sword competition." The condescension in his voice was clear. As much as he was in favour of promoting the Schnee name with silly events like this one, the two of them knew it was all just a ruse to delay the marriage.

Weiss cleared her throat, shifting in her seat under his careful gaze.

"There will be three rounds of voting. First the judges will look at all the weapons and discard the clearly poorly made ones, then we will look at the remaining ones all together, wherein the judges will discard some until there is only the top five, and then I will pick the winner from those five. Everything is done without knowing who the contestants are and who made which weapon. To keep things fair."

"Right… fair," Mocking and disdain. Always mocking and disdain. "And how will you know the winner, once a weapon has been selected?"

"Each weapon will have a number on it, linking them to the contestant. After a winner is picked, we will all be able to see the winner's number and therefore the winner themselves."

"And if you were to look at or were told the contestant numbers beforehand?"

"It… it would not be right, father. Not fair to all involved."

"I am told the Winchester's number will be 32."

"Why would you tell me that! That goes against the rules-"

"Quiet you insolent girl. How dare you speak to your father that way." Jacque rose, clenching a fist. He was angry.

Weiss's eyes widened. That was bad, to maker her father angry. But, she could possibly use it to her advantage. A Schnee does always find her opponents' weaknesses to use against them.

"I had not meant to speak so harshly, but I will not be breaking the rules of my own event just to ensure victory for the man of your choosing. It was agreed by you, mother and I that it will be a blind vote. The judges and I can watch the contestants build their weapons, but none of them will be labelled with any of their own names, nor will we be allowed to see their final assembly."

"You will find out which one was created by that Winchester boy and he will be named victor." Her father pointed a rude finger at her.

Instead of backing down, Weiss stood up as well. Still very much shorter than her father, it did little to sway him, but it did keep him from completely looking down on her.

"Even mother has yet to bring up Cardin. Why are you so insistent on me breaking the rules for his sake? Isn't he supposed to be a gifted weapon-smith?"

"This has less to do with that boy you will marry and more with your lack of accepting your role and duty as my daughter."

"I apologize, but I still believe it would be best to maintain course." With that, Weiss turned to leave the room. There was little she could say that had not already been said. She knew Cardin's number now, but she also knew her father, and most likely mother, knew she knew. That meant it would probably be changed, to keep her from deliberately not choosing him.

Details within details with them. Even though her father had been the one to have this conversation with her, she knew it would have been at the behest of her mother. She was the intelligent one among the two of them.

When she opened the door, she was surprised to see someone standing in her way. Someone she recognized but really wished she didn't. It was paint girl once again. Of all the people, it had to be her standing in front of the door. As the girl began to speak, Weiss quickly silence her, responding to her father's question and closing the door abruptly.

Once it was safe from the gaze of Jacques, her attention was once again on paint girl. "And what do you think you're doing here?"


	19. A Real Hello

"An accident?" Ruby tried with a tiny smile in hopes of lightening the mood under the harsh question Weiss had presented her with. Ruby's insides however were flipping wildly. She was supposed to make a better introduction with Weiss! Weiss had done so much for her already without even knowing who she was and the two of them already had a… less than pleasant history.

How could Ruby show Weiss that she just wanted to let bygones be bygones if they kept bumping into each other at the worst possible times? Like for instance, entering a part of the estate that she probably shouldn't be.

Weiss held the bridge of her nose, shaking her head. "Whatever, not a problem right now." Grabbing onto her wrist, she dragged the younger girl away, down a series of corridors. She didn't really have a place she wanted to take the bumbling girl, but she knew it would be as far away from her father as possible.

"Where are you taking me?" Came the obvious question.

Weiss scowled, "quiet paint girl."

"My names not-"

"I don't care. I'm taking you away from my father. Now just shut up and-"

"Hey!" Ruby dug her feat in, nearly yanking Weiss backwards. "You can tell me to be quiet or even yell at me for being where I shouldn't, but you don't need to swear about it. And my name isn't Paint Girl, Paint Girl. My name is Ruby-"

"I don't care about your name, _Ruby_. Right now, I want to know what you think you're doing here."

"I'm here for the competition, duh. You paid for my ticket as well. Thank you, by the way." While Ruby's tone was harsh, Weiss was taken aback by the words of thanks. She… hadn't expected it.

"Oh, um… You're welcome."

There was a pause, neither knowing exactly what to say to the other.

Ruby let out a quiet breath, "I'm sorry for wandering around your house. I didn't mean to. I was just looking and then I got lost. I was going to ask for help, but then I heard you and some guy talking and-"

"How much did you hear?" Weiss panicked.

Holding her hands up and waving them in front of the shocked white-haired girl, Ruby gaped, "Not a lot, promise! Just about a marriage proposal and him wanting you to cheat for someone. Honest."

Weiss's glare continued.

"I promise I won't tell anybody. I'm just here to make the best weapon I can. I've been working on this design for such a long time and now I get to really make it. I'd like to win, but this has already been a dream come true just to be here." Ruby's honesty was refreshing in a way.

There was little doubt in Weiss's mind that Ruby was a terrible liar. Her eyes shone with honest pride. They were just so big and silver. Such an unusual colour. And with that red shirt with her dark red hair, they seemed to shine that much more.

Finally, she acquiesced, letting go of Ruby and allowing her to rub it. Weiss had not realized how tight her grip on the girl was.

"I… apologize for hurting you."

"That's alright. I'm stronger than I look." Ruby smiled sheepishly. "I guess now that we aren't yelling at each other, we should probably say hello."

Ruby held out her hand with a smile, "Hi, I'm Ruby."

Weiss looked at the hand in front of her, and then back at the smiling girl. How could she be so forgiving so quickly. More so, why should Weiss forgive her for that paint, all that time ago?

"I'm Weiss," she grabbed the hand, giving it a firm shake. "I guess I can forgive you for wandering through my parents' estate. And for listening into our conversation. And for spilling paint on me."

"Hey, you ran into me. And I almost missed out on finding my perfect spinning noise toy."

"You weren't the one who ended up with paint on them after your little incursion. I believe that would make me in the right."

"I don't think it works that way, but… I'm sorry too. I wasn't looking where I was going. Really, I was just so focused on getting that toy."

"What could be so important about a toy?"

Ruby smiled, "you will just have to wait and see!"

Weiss shook her head. That made no sense.

"I guess then, I should bring you back to the main plaza. Help you get set up before the competition starts."

Ruby waved a hand at Weiss, "Pshh. No need, I set everything up before I went wandering off. I may be a poor girl from a tiny town, but I'm smart!"

"Smarter than you look, anyways," Weiss turned away from Ruby, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Hey!" She could hear Ruby's high-pitched whine and could almost feel the girl's pouting reply. "I look plenty smart. Maybe I don't have all the fanciest gadgets but I'm going to be the best weapon-smith ever. I'm going to win your competition and everything!"

"And what do you plan to do with that win? Take me on a date? Dance with me at the ball? Or exchange it for a cash reward." Weiss crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, waiting to see how the younger girl could stumble her way through this question.

"You could exchange it for a cash reward? I just wanted to build a weapon not made from scrap metal."

Or bumble straight through it. Who was this girl?

"I know Yang said that winning would be a great way to meet you a-and get contacts or something, but… I just wanted to build. To… to prove to myself that I could actually do this. That it isn't just a hobby or something like that. I know that this is probably a little more important to you than it is for me," she gestured behind her, "if what I heard was right, then this is about you getting married, but to me, you were never something I considered."

Ruby flinched and shrank into herself, eyes darting to her feet, "sorry. That was a little rude. Yang always told me to think before I spoke and-"

"That's alright."

Ruby looked up, "huh?"

Weiss let out a small smile. A real one, for once. "It's refreshing to hear that somebody thinks this whole thing isn't about me. Truthfully, I've been using it as a means to get out of a forced marriage. Or at least to slow it down. The winner of this competition is supposed to take me on a date. The hope was to have my parents' choice of betrothed win, and then us to 'fall in love' so our engagement would look more legitimate… And I have no idea why I told you that. Repeat it to anybody and no one will find the body."

And to Weiss's shock, Ruby giggled. How dare she giggle at her threat.

"S-sorry, Weiss." She gasped through giggles, "I-it's just you are so funny."

Weiss rolled her eyes, "knock it off, you dolt."

It took a few moments, but eventually Ruby calmed down enough to continue their conversation, wiping a tear from her eye as a last measure. "Don't worry. Your secret's safe with me. And since I'm trying to win anyways, maybe I'll help you out with your problem as well!"

Just as Weiss was preparing to speak, an announcement rang out, letting all the contestants know to make their way back to the Central Plaza. The competition was to be starting soon. Sooner than either Weiss or Ruby expected; until they checked to see how much time had passed while they spoke to each other.

"Follow me, Ruby." Weiss said, already walking passed the redhead. "Don't want you getting lost again."

"Thanks Weiss. Maybe you are nicer than you look."

"I look plenty nice; I will have you know. Just maybe not to incompetent bumpkins from nowhere. Hopefully show that apparent intelligence of yours during yours while manufacturing my weapon."

Ruby laughed at that, running up to walk beside Weiss. "Don't worry about me, I plan to. Are you going to be watching the competition?"

Weiss nodded, "at least a portion of it. I can't stay until the end, due to it being a blind judging process, but I do enjoy watching masters at their craft."

"Are you going to watch me?"

"I guess I will have to. Hopefully you don't blow up and leave a crater in my floor."

"Wouldn't that be disastrous. I can't imagine any new words you could use to beat me spilling paint on you… I did apologize for that, right?"

"You did," Weiss smirked, "and I am fluent in three languages. I have plenty of more vocabulary with which to assault you with for when you inevitably make a mistake."

Finally they reached the Central Plaza. Dozens of contestants were preparing their tables, getting their last-minute notes jotted down or re-positioning the tools on their table for ease of use. Ruby turned back to look at Weiss, the person who initiated this entire event.

"Wish me luck?"

Weiss huffed, "a true master wouldn't need luck."

"But she'd still like it," Ruby grinned.

"Maybe next time. I'll be watching to make sure you don't screw up. Right there by the roses."

Ruby laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing, nothing Weiss. Just a funny coincidence. It's just that my-"

"All contestants to your stations!" Came the final call.

Ruby gave one last shout back to Weiss, before waving and darting off to her station, leaving Weiss wondering what Ruby had just found so funny. As well as with plenty of thoughts as to how that girl had been so cheerful and honest. Weiss the thought shook her head with a smile, "I'll be needing to thank Blake for meeting that girlfriend of hers."

Until then, she had a competition to watch. And with silent thoughts, she wished that bumbling girl good luck.


	20. A Weapon Worthy of Weiss

Ruby's fingers twitched over her screwdriver, waiting along with everyone else in the plaza for the bell to ring. Her head was on a swivel, trying to keep all her thoughts in order. And more importantly, keep her from forgetting where she put her hammer and metal sander. She could feel her heart pounding deep in her chest. It wasn't a pleasant feeling.

Shutting her eyes, she forced herself to take a big breath in. She held it, speaking with her inner conscious. Her thoughts became that of her big sister's. The kind of words that only Yang could give her at a time like this. "Don't screw up! I would hate to see you waste this sword-ed event of yours."

Of course, she would be using the word 'sordid' improperly, but when did Yang care about the true meaning of words, as long as she could get a pun out of them?

And then there was Blake, who's quiet demeanour hid someone great. They hadn't spoken that much, but Ruby liked her. When she got back, Ruby would have to tell Yang that her girlfriend passed the baby sister test with flying colours.

And then there was Weiss, whom after two bad starts, had finally become… Ruby wouldn't quite say 'friends' yet. But she was sure that they were getting there. At least they weren't yelling at each other anymore. And Weiss wished her luck! Well, no not really. Weiss said she didn't need luck, but that's almost the same thing.

Really, she didn't care about winning the competition. It had never been about winning or anything like that. Just a chance to do what she loved to do, without any restrictions on it. Just her and her hands. And brain, she couldn't forget about that. But it was just her, surrounded by people who loved the craft as much as she did.

With a loud ring, they were off. Ruby felt the rush of wind as expert and amateur smiths ran past her to collect their chosen metals. Some moving straight to the lathes to start carving out pieces. Others to the forge, set to an optimal temperature for the kind of metal provided. Ruby stayed at her desk, her hand flying to her screwdriver and her music toy. With careful and surgical precision she dismantled each layer of it, placing them in order along her desk. First the wooden shell, along with the three screws which held them together. Then the gears. She would be making stronger versions of those later. And lastly, the rotating metal center, where those delightful clicks originated.

The pieces in front of her, it was now time to start her real work. There was still plenty of metal to spare, so she grabbed three chunks, throwing two straight into the blazing furnace and bringing the last to her table. Checking the time, she sighed. Ahead of schedule by two minutes. That was a good sign. Back to the furnace, she pulled out a hot piece of metal and began the process of hammering into shape. By shape, she meant turning it from a short block of metal, into a long block of metal. About halfway through the process, she stopped and tossed it back in.

Then it was onto the second piece. This one she did very much the same thing. Then, with her metal tongs, she brought it over to a metal cutter, splitting the piece into six equal parts. Ruby wiped the sweat from her brow. It was a time-consuming process. The heat of the forge, the running and constant hammering. The sounds of more than a dozen others all doing the same as she was.

It was incredible. It brought a delightful little smile to her lips, and the thought that this was what university would be like if she could get into her chosen program. With a full scholarship, if she was lucky. Ruby shook her head. Thoughts of that all-important meeting that was to happen later tonight were tossed aside in favour of the smell of cut-metal and machining oil.

Finally she took her turn on the lath, rounding out her block of metal to start the work on the fitted cylindrical chamber. Then it was to the metal bender to… bend metal. And then cut it, then file it down. And a hundred other steps that she had memorized in her preparation for this day. At each step of the way, she compared what she had crafted to the metal components she had disassembled from her music toy.

She looked at the time. She was behind. It was well passed noon and she still didn't have a completed blade. Not to mention her grip was only about half done and she hadn't even started on the decorations yet. Slapping her cheeks to keep her focus, she buckled down and pressed forward. Nothing was going to stop the mighty Ruby Rose! Not if she had anything to say about it.

Ruby thought about home. She thought about her future. About becoming a world-famous weapons smith with her own forge to her name. About the house she and Yang had lived in since she was born and how they would finally be able to repair everything about it. Maybe by then, Blake would move in with them. They wouldn't need a guest room, so of course she could turn it into a workshop. No, Ruby already had her workshop outside, and she wasn't prepared to give that one up.

Maybe a cookie room? Because everyone needed a room to store all their cookies. Ruby bet Weiss had a cookie room somewhere in her house. It was just so big with so many rooms there just had to be one. Or maybe several.

She doused the metal in oil, feeling a tingle down her spine at the quenching sound and seeing the steam rise up. The blade was done for now. Placing it on her desk, she got back to work, linking gears together and attaching the assembly to the shaft.

Her time was running out. Her hands flew faster than ever before. Sanding down bits of metal to leave behind a smooth finish. Then polishing everything to bring about a beautiful shine. She grabbed a strip of white leather and wrapped it around the hilt, pressing inwards to give it a perfect grip. Holding the forged blade in her hands, she tested the balance. A little off, it didn't roll how she wanted it to.

Back to sanding.

Ruby looked at the hilt, trying to figure out why the grip didn't look quite right. It was the colour. Grabbing some silver coloured thread, she sewed it carefully up and into the leather. Then a string of red. Hiding most of it under the silver and white, it gave the grip a little gleam of colour that could really only be noticed up close or to the trained eye. There, it was perfect.

Now for the final test. Head back up to check the time, three minutes remaining. Holding the cylinder up to her ear, she gave it a small turn. Eyes shut, waiting for it. It could all be for naught if this failed. A full day to build an entire weapon design that would sound ugly if this didn't work as she had hoped it would.

She grimaced, scrunching her eyes and holding her breath.

Click-clack.

A massive sigh of relief poured out.

It was done. It was perfect.

With her screwdriver, on the blade, but near the hilt, she etched out in careful cursive the blade's name.

Blowing off the metal bits, then wiping it all down with her cloth, she breathed a happy breath.

The bell rang, signalling the end of the competition. There was clapping from around the plaza as those watching cheered for all the competitors and the skill displayed. Ruby could only hope that they were including her in their cheers.

She placed the blade carefully down on the desk, walking to the edge of the plaza to line up with the other contestants. They all looked sweaty. Some looked happy, others sad. She could tell just from their expressions if they had finished or not, to their own levels of satisfaction. There was one boy that didn't even look like he broke a sweat. His smirk showed everyone just what he thought of this competition and his chances of winning. He lounged back against the wall, without a care in the world. He was probably super confident in his weapon winning.

All attention was focused on a tall white-haired man with a thick moustache and white suit. Ruby smiled when she noticed Weiss walking behind him. She almost waved to her, but the thought better of it, seeing the man who was most definitely her father.

"Thank you all for your work building my daughter her weapon. My servants will now take them all to the judges to begin the selection process." Weiss's father said.

"Yes, thank you all," Weiss repeated, bowing her head in a short moment of respect. "You all worked very hard today, and even though there can only be a single winner, you all proved that you have chosen your craft and profession well. I hope to speak with all of you either at the ball or before you depart."

Ruby caught Weiss's eye for a moment, giving her a super tiny wave. Weiss and her father left, leaving Ruby unsure if the girl saw it or not. But that was alright. She was done. The hard part was over for her. Now to wait and find out the winner.


	21. A Choice and a Tampered Decision

Weiss was only a little disappointed to miss the latter half of the event. From what she saw, it looked like a bunch of people chopping up and carving bits of metal. Sometimes there were sparks flying as metal was sanded down on the electric sanders. Other times it was the loud bangs of hammers, or the squeaks of who knows what. It was interesting to be sure, but she was never completely into the manufacturing and designing aspect of a hunstman's weapon.

Weiss preferred their use.

So, a bit before noon, Weiss and the rest of the panel of judges were escorted to a different part of the estate where the actual judging would eventually take place. That meant a few hours of boredom. Some judges spoke with one another; they were all experts in the field of weapon-smithing after all, so it made sense for them to want to compare notes. Most of what they spoke about went straight over Weiss's head. No, Weiss did not know the advantages and disadvantages between stationary and mecha-shift weaponry. No, the addition of point one percent more gold into a specific steel alloy was not something that she had spent weeks researching or learning. Nor did she care to begin learning it.

Even with all the technical gibberish, Weiss could really only think about how that Ruby girl would have loved to be with them right now. They had only spoken for a short while, yet it was clear to Weiss that this was her life. The technical, as well as the aesthetics. Weiss truly was curious what she would be making for the competition.

"Hopefully it's better than Cardin's." Weiss said to herself, turning away from the other judges.

With a knock at the door, a procession of servants, each carrying one beautifully crafted blade reverently in their arms came through. It was truly a sight to behold. It surprised Weiss, how in the span of only a single day, all with the same basic materials, these people could craft such unique blades and designs. Each was laid down on a clothed table for all the judges to see. Weiss followed them to the table, but while they each carried notebooks and pens to scratch away and detail their notes, she was able to just admire their individual splendour.

The first one that caught her eye was a fully white sword. It's blade was straight with a crossbar inlaid with silver and what looked to be diamond. With her nail, she scratched at it, looking for any cracks. Her eyes widened when she saw no marks. They were most likely the real deal. "When did we put out diamonds for contestant use?" Weiss mused quietly before moving to the next blade.

Most were the standard grey-ish, silver-ish colour, but some had added flair. One sparkled in the light but looked too flimsy to actually be of any use. Another was red or purple, depending on which way Weiss looked at it. One was a light blue, from the hilt all the way to the top of the blade. It was all so interesting to see.

"Have we all had a nice look?" One of the judges said, looking to his fellows for their nods of affirmation. "Then, let us begin. Weiss? If you would…"

Weiss nodded, knowing it was time for her to leave the room. The first round of judging was to be done without her. She had faith that her father's selected judges would choose only the best blades for her to make the final selection from. She also had faith that all her father's selected judges would be bought, and one of those final blades would be Cardin's. Whether it was indeed a worthy blade or not.

Soon, it would be the part that Weiss was both excited for and dreading. A true mind-game to be played with her father and mother. The reward for winning, freedom from this betrothal, at least for a time. The penalty for losing? Well, Weiss hoped she would not lose. If anything, she had a better chance of winning thanks to statistics.

Weiss had to think hard. What would be the most likely weapon that Cardin would make, based on what her parents most likely told him? Weiss could immediately disregard the flashiest weapon, as that would be too obvious a choice for his. Or, would her mother know that she would think it was the obvious choice and have Cardin make that one?

"Ugh," Weiss growled, sliding against the wall and down onto the ground, taking extra notice of her surroundings so that none would see her sitting there.

As much as she wanted a weapon and for this entire process to end, she was dreading this moment. She had never seen a weapon Cardin had built before, so would not know his signature style. Similarly, Weiss didn't know what sort of funny business was going to go in this closed-door portion of the judging. She wouldn't put it past her father to have all three blades be copies of one of Cardin's, or to have played with the identification tags so all three were linked to him. Anything to get his way and control one more aspect of his precious daughter's life. All while enriching his and his wife's companies of course.

As much as she scoffed at her father's unorthodox and downright brutish tactics and business practices, at least his were understandable and straightforward. It had always been her mother that she worried about the most. She was what Blake had called a 'Chaotic Lawful' archetype. It was a play on some silly game she enjoyed; the rules of which Weiss had never bothered to learn nor truly understand. But Blake did at least explain what she meant. A person who used the literal definition of the law to its extreme. It was ingenious in its own right. Never breaking the law, nor even crossing it, but doing things that didn't often make the most sense to those of more sensible minds.

If the law stated a company with more than five hundred employees paid a higher amount of tax, she would hire five hundred employees for five separate companies, all working as independent subsidiaries of a single product. If an employer could only be CEO of one company at a time, then she was the CFO, or CTO or any other chief whatever officer gave her the most power with which to control her companies. And of course, if there was a loophole in the law, it would be her to exploit it first.

Weiss had to hand it to her mother. There was few craftier than she. As proud as Weiss was, in an annoyed sort of way, it just made this choice in blade that much more difficult. Would it be the most obvious choice? The least obvious? The central, least divisive option? Would his sword be placed in the middle, where a person's eyes were first drawn to? The right side? The left? Even the smallest change in placement for their first-time viewing could change the perception of an item and guarantee a choice favouring it or not.

Weiss sighed, wishing for not the first time that she had paid more attention while learning business psychology.

Then, there was a hand on her shoulder.

Flinching from the sudden pressure, she looked up to see a judge looking down on her. "We have decided," he said, leaving her to stand up on her own.

"Well, then. Please show me the final selections."

Weiss was led back into the room where only three swords remained. The first one was the white one she had noticed before. Beautiful in appearance in almost every way. She wanted to hold it, feel its weight in her hand and give it a few thrusts.

"That blade is named _Beaufort_. One pound, eight ounces, it is light, sleek and exquisitely designed." The judge lifted the blade I both hands, gently withdrawing it from its scabbard. "Do you hear that?"

Weiss listened, but in the end shook her head.

"Exactly. Perfectly fitted and silent upon removal from its sheath. Made of the provided metal but laced with white ash to give it this Schnee White colour, then sanded down and polished. Inlaid with real gemstones. White leather hilt as required. Altogether, one of the best swords of this competition if you don't say so myself."

Weiss nodded, letting the judge place the blade into her hands. It was light. Very much so. The grip fit her fingers perfectly, like she had held it hundreds of times before. "Remarkable weapon. Please, let us continue."

The judges moved on to the next one. "This one here is named _Minderwertigkeit_. Two pounds, seven ounces, also a rapier. Purple in colouration, thanks to combining the metal with the powder of a violet flower, along with a few other chemicals, which the smith has refused to share. In all, it is a sharp blade, well-balanced and looks exquisite. The white leather grip is malleable to fit to your hands after some use and works well with the dark purple colour of the rest of the blade."

Weiss held this one, rolling it around in her hands o see both sides, before grapping the grip and holding it aloft. Heavy. Not by much, but a bit too heavy for what she would like. This would be a perfect choice if her father had been the only one to have his hand in this. No way would he suspect Weiss of choosing a blade that would be too heavy for her. Her mother on the other hand…

"And lastly, this on here…" Weiss placed down the purple blade and looked at the final one of the table. It was the strangest of the three for sure. There was no scabbard accompanying it, just a blade with what looked to be a barrel fitted into it. The judge speaking did not look too impressed with it.

"This one, as detailed by the smith is a rapier-revolver hybrid weapon. It was chosen of the three, even with its strange design, because it was the most unique of the choices, while also being sturdily built and assembled quite well. Straight silver in colour, with no metals or items smelted in to change it in any way. Thin, yet surprisingly sturdy, two pounds, four ounces in weight. It is named Myrtenaster. I do have to point out that while it looks like both the sword and… gun portion of this weapon are well-made, it does have an annoying sound which almost took it from the running."

Weiss could only smirk at the judge's statement. Obviously, it had been chosen as the third option. The one least likely to be picked because of poor workmanship. "Fine, give it here," Weiss said, holding out a hand for the strange looking blade. Grabbing it by the handle from out of the judge's hands, she held it up, looking at it was a critical eye from each angle.

It was, surprisingly, well balanced and weighted well. It did look odd though. The white leather had been patterned, which was nice, but it was hard. It wouldn't shape to her fingers well, requiring a lot of practice with it and constant use to mould to her touch. It looked different though. Not just pure white like the others but laced with some other colour that caught her eye. Or was it colours?

And the revolver-like chamber at the center of the sword, just above the hilt, was a little jarring. Wondering what her judges meant by annoying sound, she spun the cylinder.

Click-clack-click-clack-click-clack-click

She watched it spin with fascination. It was a somewhat loud sound, but not altogether bad. It spun effortlessly as well. Almost as if…

Almost as if the smith had designed it to have this sound in particular. It was calming. Those sounds continued to slow as friction took a greater toll, and yet, the rhythmic click-clacking continued to bring Weiss some amusement.

It was a brilliant weapon.

Now, for the difficult final decision ahead of her. The perfectly sculpted white blade, that fit her so perfectly. The purple blade that was heavy, but exquisitely made. Or the silver rapier that was also a gun, that held those little ticks which warmed her heart?


	22. A Competition's End, A Journey Home

Weiss wandered around her home, talking with people, exchanging business cards and other methods of contact information with wealthy sons and daughters of industry or those from their parents, mostly hoping to find Blake to escape from this madness. Weiss had had a long night, and it was soon to be an even longer one. Checking her watch, she saw the time was seven-thirty. Only another half an hour until the ball started and the announcement of the winner of her little competition. She sighed, wishing to have had some time to talk with her best friend. Even seeing Ruby again wouldn't have been all that bad. The doltish girl did seem to make an impression on her.

She smiled, remembering that little wave she gave her at the end of the competition. She was the only one of the lot that had looked at her during the closing speeches and not her father. It warmed her, to know that even with the altogether rocky start, there was a friendship that seemed to be blooming. Weiss would make sure to remind herself to have Blake give the girl her number.

Not for anything strange, of course, she told herself.

Just to talk.

Yes, just talking.

Talking over the phone was definitely something that friends did.

Yes.

Rolling her eyes to remove whatever thoughts she had, she continued her pace around her estate.

"That was not what we had arranged!"

The angered voice of her father seeped from behind a closed door. Weiss had to know what angered him so much. Standing with her back against the wall, holding her phone in both hands to fain being busy, she perked her ears, listening for anything more. And most importantly, using her phone to record whatever could be from that room.

"I don't care who that Rose person is, or how good their weapon may be. The Winchester boy's was forged by expert weapon-smiths; the best money could buy! How could it have lost?!"

Weiss's smile grew. They were talking about her choice. Her new weapon. It wasn't Cardin's. It wasn't Cardin's!

She almost squealed with glee before remembering her surroundings. Hopefully this Rose boy would be willing to go to the dance with her. Just to rub it in poor mother and father's faces. Not that she would ever say such a thing out loud.

"We cannot let the public know," her mother's voice was calm and collected. Very much unlike her father's. She was planning something. "If we can get the weapon-smith to take money in exchange for relinquishing claims to the blade, or even a glowing recommendation from us to whatever school or job they want, then maybe we can still play this right."

"And if they refuse?"

"Then we blackmail them," Weiss could almost feel her mother's lackadaisical shrug through her words.

Weiss leaned in closer to the door but could not seem to make out anything else her parents were saying. Just the occasional hushed whisper and her father's voice raising in anger, only to be calmed, then silenced by that of her mother. Weiss scowled. Of course the two of them were plotting something.

But, at least she knew that Cardin was not the winner. She doubted her parents would reveal to her the winner's full identity, but at least she had a last name. Or maybe a first name.

"Ugh," Weiss sighed. Too many potential people. The best-case scenario would be her parents mistakenly 'losing' the identity of the winner and ask the maker of the sword to come forward with conclusive proof. It's what she would do in their place.

There was not enough time to think too hard on it just then. There was still a ball to prepare for. Half an hour with which to take a ludicrously fast shower and change into her formal attire. Thankfully, there were perks to hosting a ball inside one's own home.

A quick shower later and Weiss was sitting in front of her desk, her hair wrapped up tightly in a towel and her dress laid out on her bed, just waiting to be slipped on. Weiss, however, was paying more attention to her reflection in the mirror in front of her. Her eyes darted across those of her reflection, trying to map out every ridge and imperfection in their shape and colour. She always felt like something was wrong with her face. There was just something about it which ticked her the wrong way.

Maybe it was her colouration. It was too pale to her. Almost like porcelain. Like it would crack at any moment. Weiss's lips tugged into a small smirk. Maybe a crack on her face would do her some good.

There was a knock on her door.

"Come in," she said, pulling her attention away from herself.

The door opened to her mother, who looked exquisite in her own dress. "Daughter, why are you not yet ready? The ball is very soon."

"I was waiting for my hair to finish drying. And haven't you always said that to be late to a party shows power and authority?"

Weiss's mother let out a delightful giggle. Something that sounded so perfect it had to have been rehearsed. Willow always was a master of perception. "To true, my dear."

"Excuse me for sounding abrupt, but what exactly did you come here to speak with me about?"

Best to get right down to business.

"Well, my dear, it has to do with the weapon you chose."

"Isn't it grand?" Weiss asked, her smug attitude easily resting on both her face and her relaxed posture. Something Willow quickly picked up on.

"So you know it was not Mr. Winchester's weapon?"

"It was some guy named Rose."

Willow frowned at hearing that name. "So you heard?"

"I heard."

"Then you know why I cannot release the results of this competition."

"That wasn't part of our deal, mother," Weiss was fuming. How dare she go back on their deal?

"I am sorry, but… he has already accepted the money. He's been paid off handsomely. Cardin will be declared the winner. You may keep Mr. Rose's weapon, but it will be claimed by Mr. Winchester."

"No."

"What was that, daughter?"

"I said no."

"And pray tell why I will give in to your demands?"

It took a moment for Weiss to think. She knew she did not want Cardin but lacked any clear reason for her mother. She could refuse without a reason, but where would that lead? Her mother and father had only rarely indulged her requests, and something as important as this? There was no way to refuse them. No, she had to be smart. There had to be some card she could play. Something, anything. Then it hit her.

"Because I know the truth about Cardin's weapon. And if you go through with this, I will ensure everyone knows."

"I don't know what you are talking about, dear."

"Yes. You do. It would be a real shame if Mr. Cardin Winchester, the heir to his father's company is discovered to be a fraud, right before he is set to marry the heiress to the Schnee Conglomerate. Imagine all the negative press. On both companies."

Willow frowned, fingers curling into fists. Then, a small smile appeared, "well, I did not expect you to learn blackmail quite so well."

"I learned from the best, _mother_."

"I won't be telling people who won. If you do, we will do away with this whole charade and marry you off to the man of my choosing."

"And if you do that, then I will tell what I know."

"It will be your word against mine."

"And whose word will the press be more interested in? The one which paints the Schnee family as they normally do? Or the one which brings about controversy?"

Weiss knew she won, the moment she saw her mother scowl.

"Then, I propose another deal, as we are at an impasse. You have four months to find the victor. Without any help from us. If you can prove without any doubt that he is the winner, then we will continue along with your foolish plan to keep Mr. Winchester from being your fiancé. Otherwise, we will progress forward, and you will marry him."

"That seems less than fair," Weiss admonished.

"And you have no more cards to play. We both know who controls the deck. If you go public with your information, then I disinherit you. We both know I don't want to, but it is something I am able to do. And besides, the only other card you can have, is by coming forth with the true winner of your little competition. I like to think that I am being more than generous with you."

Willow held out her hand. Annoyed at her situation, but knowing it was the best chance she was going to get, Weiss took it.

Only a short time later, Weiss was in her dress, her done up in an off-centre ponytail which she thoroughly enjoyed. Walking through her estate, she bumped into a panicky Blake.

"Have you seen her?" Blake's head was on a swivel.

"Seen who?"

"Ruby."

Weiss shook her head.

"I need to find her. Yang said we have to be back at her home by a specific time, meaning we have to leave here in the next five minutes."

"What's so important?"

"Yang and Ruby are meeting the headmaster to Beacon University. It's their chance to get scholarships to go there! I cannot blow this; Yang will never forgive me if I'm late."

"Whoa Blake, calm down I'll help you look for her. And I promise you both will arrive back to the Xiao-Long household in no time."

"Thank you," Blake said, finally giving herself time to take a deep breath and relax.

As Blake and Weiss parted ways, Weiss felt a frown emerge. Ruby wasn't staying for the ball? As strangely upbeat as that girl was, she was the only person that Weiss had met so far that day that only truly cared about the competition part of the competition. Not anything to do with Weiss.

Weiss turned down another hallway, looking around for that girl, no doubt bumbling her way through sections of the house that were off limits. Weiss could faintly hear the music start up, signalling that the ball had officially begun. Not that Weiss really cared of course. Her plan was to get a weapon out of this day. The ball was purely for the benefit of her parents. The same parents who had now gone against their original plan to force Weiss once again to do as they said. Her mother was right. The only way to gain the upper hand would be to find whoever that Rose person was. From the way her mother was talking, Weiss felt confident enough that he was a man.

That did not help much, however. Most of the contestants were male. And Weiss doubted that her mother would keep the records of who participated. Not after today's series of events.

Weiss continued looking, asking her servants if they had spotted the silver eyed girl, to no avail.

And then, she heard it.

"Weiss?"

Weiss spun around, looking outside. To the grounds where the smithing competition had taken place. "Ruby!"

There she was, looking around her table. Her hands were filled with her things, clutched together with no order. She looked seconds away from dropping everything, and still she jumped up and around her table, looking for something.

"Ruby, Blake has been looking everywhere for you. You need to go."

"I know, Weiss. But I can't go yet!" Ruby replied, not even bothering to look at her.

"What are you looking for?"

"It's… it's a metal pin. I need it."

"What could be so important about a small piece of metal? It's just a pin."

Ruby ducked under a table. "It's not just a pin. It's the basis for the weapon I designed. Well, it's a pin that is attached to a toy I designed my weapon around. But I need it if I ever want to rebuild the weapon and improve on it." Weiss heard a bump, followed by a high-pitched Ruby squeak, as the girl hit her head on the underside of the table. "And I need to show my idea to Beacon University. I really need that scholarship."

"Then let me help look," Weiss finally decided, slowly settling down to her knees to help Ruby look for a metal pin.

Weiss rolled her eyes. This was all for a pin. Weiss was crinkling her dress for a piece of metal. That Ruby girl better want to be her friend after this, or she might just kill her.

"Weiss, Ruby!" It was Blake. "Come on, we're already late. I'm going to need the driver to speed and hope we don't get a ticket, or you'll be late."

"But-"

"No," Weiss interrupted Ruby, staring into her eyes. "I promise you I will find it and have it sent to you. Please go."

"Thank you so much, Weiss." Ruby dove at the girl, forcing her into a hug.

"You're a good friend." Ruby whispered into her ear, before standing up and running off with Weiss.

Weiss stood up, watching her best friend and her new friend run off. Weiss could only stare after her in slight shock. She still felt the weight of the girl on her arms, and her chin on her shoulder.

"Good luck." Weiss whispered to no one. "My friend."


	23. Conversations and Requirements

Ruby smiled after seeing Blake's almost resistant hug with Yang. Ruby's smile widened when Yang's kiss on her cheek sent her face into a fierce and uncontrolled blush. Those two definitely were good for each other. It had been a while since she had seen her big sister truly happy. It was also great to see her happy about something other than Ruby's own life. As much as Ruby loved her doting older sister, Yang needed to have a life outside of her. After everything, Yang deserved nothing left.

Smiling as Blake closed the door to the limousine, the two sisters watched it drive off into the distance, each with their own little wave until it disappeared from view.

"So? What do you think?" Yang asked, heading back inside.

"Out of ten? I give her a seven."

"Only a seven? Come on Rubes, she's definitely at least a seven and a half."

Ruby laughed at her sister's remark.

"So, why so low?"

"She didn't give in to the puppy dog pout!" Ruby harrumphed.

Yang whistled, "not many people can do that. I think that warrants at least an eight or nine on the awesomeness scale."

Ruby giggled. "Blake is amazing. She gets the little sister seal of approval."

Fist-pumping in celebration, Yang walked into the kitchen to finish up a few last-minute chores. "And how was your day?" She called, turning on the tap.

"It was incredible." Ruby's replied wistfully. It had been everything she had dreamed it would be. She had a chance to build with some of the best machines and materials she had ever seen in her life. It had been a great day to work and she had built a beautiful piece of weaponry. She almost wished she had it with her to show to the headmaster.

And almost like magic, there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it!" Ruby shouted, dashing towards the door.

With only a small stumble over her own feet to slow her down, she opened it to two people. The first was a sharply dressed woman with light blonde, nearly silver hair tied up in a tight bun. Standing behind her was an older man with grey hair and spectacles on his nose. He held a cane in one hand and a closed mug in the other. His suit was black, yet Ruby could not help but see flickers of green in the thread.

"Is this the house of Miss Ruby Rose and Miss Yang Xiao Long?" The woman's voice broke Ruby from her stupor, allowing her to mumble in the affirmative.

"May we come inside?" The woman asked, now a fair bit stricter in her question. She was a guest and yet Ruby felt like she was being commanded to do something inside her own house.

It vaguely reminded her of Miss Fall. A comparison which did not inspire confidence in Ruby, nor sway her impression of the woman very well.

"Yes, of course. Please come inside," Yang replied, coming to Ruby's rescue. "Don't mind my little sister. She just got back from the Schnee's sword-making competition or whatever. Do you want anything? Coffee? Tea? Cookies? No, we're out of cookies… Coffee? Tea?"

The man let out a small chuckle, giving his mug a gentle shake, "I seem to have brought my own with me. Glynda, anything for you?"

"Tea, with a lump of sugar, if you will."

Yang nodded and quickly darted off into the kitchen, leaving Ruby one again alone with the two individuals. She had no clue what to say. There were these two people in her house, and she could not recognize either of them. The woman was scary and glaring at her, while the man just stared at her with a faint smile on his lips.

"Hi, I'm Ruby." An easy starting point.

"Good evening Miss Rose. It has indeed been some time since we last spoke. You have grown quite a bit since our last meeting," the man said, taking a sip from his drink.

Ruby nearly asked, "we've met?" but held her tongue. She squinted, tilting her head to get a better look at him. After far too long, it finally clicked. Crimson reached up her neck and dotted her cheeks. How could she have forgotten him so easily?

"Oh! You're Professor Ozpin! The headmaster of Beacon."

"I am glad that I am so memorable to you. I only gave you a tour personally showing you around campus."

Ruby's blush deepened. Ruby wanted to argue back that it wasn't entirely her fault. The headmaster had indeed given her an extensive tour of the campus, but her focus had been a little more centered on the campus itself. Well, it was a little more centered on the machines. And weapons being made by those machines. And 3D printers. And the laser drills. Because of course Beacon University had laser drills. She could only imagine what it would be like to use one of those. She thought back to the sword she had made only a few hours before. It was incredible, but she was sure that the Quilon was not as straight as it could have been, had it been done by computer guided lasers. Everything is better with computer guided lasers. Well, maybe not everything. But everything fun.

Realizing that she had descended into a spiral of nerd-dom, she quickly apologized to the headmaster, scratching her back awkwardly.

"Sorry, I was a little distracted by everything you were showing me."

The headmaster waved it off, "please, it is not like my face is famous. I would never expect someone to know who runs a school, let alone who gives you a tour. I know I didn't remember who gave me mine when I walked those very halls, even though he was my own professor."

"Would you guys like to sit down?" Yang asked from the kitchen, bringing with her a tray of drinks.

Glynda nodded, following Yang to the couch, where she sat down, leaving enough room for Professor Ozpin to sit beside her. Yang placed the tray on the coffee table and sat down on the sofa chair across from the Beacon University faculty. Ruby squeezed in beside her big sister, reaching for her own cup.

Ruby sighed. It was cold milk. The perfect drink for calming the nerves.

"I do believe we have forgotten to introduce ourselves," Professor Ozpin began, taking a small drink from his own mug. "My name is Ozpin and I am the headmaster of Beacon University. With me tonight is Glynda Goodwitch, my esteemed deputy headmistress, as well as head of scholarships and admissions." He gestured to Glynda, who bowed her head in acknowledgement.

"If I remember correctly, you Miss Rose are looking to enter into beacon's weapon-smithing program and are on track for a scholarship, with the potential for a full-scholarship, is that right?"

Yang had to nudge Ruby for her to let out a sharp, "yup!"

"And you, Miss Xiao Long are hoping to enter into Beacon's huntsman program."

"Yes. Hopefully with a scholarship of course," Yang affirmed with a grin.

"Indeed."

"Miss Xiao Long, Rose. Scholarships, as you know are offered on three basic bases. Grade-point average, extracurriculars and circumstance," Professor Goodwitch chimed in, fixing her triangular spectacles on her nose. "Miss Rose, you are on track for a full scholarship, as you are no doubt aware. I would like to offer my early congratulations to that fact. But do be aware that you can lose said scholarship if your grades slip. Similarly, if you are unable to keep up to date with your extracurriculars. Do I make myself clear?"

Ruby nodded, smiling despite herself along with Yang. It was fantastic news.

"Miss Xiao Long, your grades are… adequate to make it into the huntsman program, though as of now, they are not at scholarship level."

"Rubes here took all the brains in the family and that's completely fine by me," Yang said with a smile.

"Your documentation does say that you do not possess any extracurriculars aside from working as a bartender. And that is due to your at-home circumstances?"

"Yup," she replied, popping her 'p'. "It's just Rubes and I living here, so I gotta do whatever I can to keep the house up and running and rent paid."

"Where may your parents be-"

"Dead," Yang interrupted.

"I apolo-"

"It happened years ago," Yang interrupted Professor Goodwitch a second time. Ruby leaned into Yang's side, enjoying the feeling of her older sister wrap an arm around her. "I bring in the bread and Ruby here keeps the place clean and gets the grades. Not to put any pressure on you -oh, hell. Who am I kidding, tons of pressure on you-"

"Yang, don't." Ruby whispered, even as Yang barreled onward.

"you guys know the situation we're in. University's expensive. And even with the perks that come from low income pricing, we just don't make enough money to both go to school. I don't have the grades for anything for a scholarship based on anything other than my at-home circumstances, but Ruby does."

"Yang," Ruby said, a little louder this time.

"We need her to get a full scholarship or at least mostly full scholarship to afford university. Not just for her but for me too. But know that she is going to your school no matter what."

"Yang," Ruby said with a commanding voice. Yang brushed off her sister.

"If she doesn't get a scholarship, then there is no reason to even look at giving me one. If it's a choice between her schooling and mine, it will always be hers. I know that there is a lot of pressure being placed on my sister for my sake, and I absolutely hate that I've put her in that position, but what's done is done. Look at her grades first. And if she is found lacking, then if it is at all possible, give her the scholarship that hopefully would have gone to me."

"Yang!" Rubbed stood up glaring at her sister, who stood firm in her own resolve.

"I'm not backing down Ruby. We both knew this was the truth. Your education is infinitely more important than mine."

"And I'm two years younger than you. I can wait and apply at a regular time. I could work and help you pay your way through university."

"Would mom have wanted you to push back on your dreams?"

Ruby stepped back, looking like she had been struck. "How dare you. Mom wouldn't have wanted you to give up on your dreams either."

And with that, Ruby left, giving one final look back to the headmaster and deputy headmistress in a silent apology.


	24. Conversations and Solutions

Ruby sat outside on the front porch, chin on her knee as she stared out into the front yard and the empty street. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the flickering streetlight and the single moth which buzzed around it. The pale orange glow surrounded the entire street, basking everything in the comforting warmth of familiarity. Ruby loved it. It seemed to always calm her down. Especially after spats with her big sister.

Ruby wrapped her arms around herself. She didn't like fighting with Yang. Especially not in front of other people, and especially not about her mom. It was not a new conversation. Yang had been firm in her belief that Ruby was the more important one out of the two of them. Something which Ruby would vehemently deny. Yang had her own life to live that was separate from her. Ruby would do anything for her big sister, much in the same way that she knew that her big sister would do anything for her.

It was always a strange dichotomy between the two of them. Always a competition. Always trying to place the other's wellbeing above their own. Yang worked every night and was risking giving up her future for Ruby. And Ruby? Well, she had dealt with Cinder Fall for a long time.

Ruby shivered. She still did not know if her time with Cinder was over. She assume not, because she was still their landlady. And held Torchwick, as well as rent over their heads.

It was at times like these that Ruby truly and desperately missed her parents. She missed her mom and dad so much. She could not even gain comfort in wearing her mother's sweater anymore. No, that garment had been torn off of her and left in rags.

But at least something good came out of that bad situation. A small hint of a smile appeared on her lips. Yes, without Emerald and that fateful night, Ruby wouldn't have had the courage, or at least the mindset, to tell Yang about those extra chores. And it had inspired her to use the design she did for Weiss's competition.

"Mind if I join you?"

Ruby flinched at the sound, spinning to see the headmaster looking down at her. In place of his own mug was a pink flower-petalled one.

"Okay," Ruby replied without much vigour.

Surprisingly, the headmaster knelt down and took a seat beside her on the porch, letting his cane rest on his knee.

"Your sister does truly and deeply care about your Miss Rose. You should be eternally grateful for that."

"I am. Of course I am. Yang's the best big sister ever, even if she is a little embarrassing at times. Don't tell her I told you that."

"Of course."

"But she always puts me above her. Did you know that I sometimes find her sneaking in some extra funds into my weapon-smithing hobby? We agreed that I would pay for all my stuff for my hobby by myself. Anything extra gets put back into my hobby or goes to the 'house-fund'. But no, Yang has to put some of her money into my hobby just so I can continue it. Doesn't matter if we can afford it or not."

"Miss Xiao Long was telling Glynda and myself a great deal about this hobby of yours. While I cannot say I am a master of the craft, I have dabbled in weapons design and the occasional smithing lesson or two. She tells us that your work is incredible. That you are a true prodigy."

Ruby blushed and waved off the thought. "She's just saying that."

"Do you have any particular pieces that you are truly proud of?"

"Well, there's my sweetheart of course. Crescent Rose is my scythe that I'm trying to build from scratch. I don't really have the right tools or metal to build it exactly how I'd like to, but I'm doing it with any bits and pieces I can scrounge around. She's my baby. Well, right now she's in two parts, so I guess I have two babies? I don't know. I think I'm rambling."

"Indeed."

"Well, there is one piece I am super duper happy with. I gave it a real fancy name, since I made it for Wiess -erm, Weiss Schnee, for her contest. It's a sword and a gun! The gun itself is a revolver barrel design in place of the guard and most of the Quilon, which makes the most beautiful sound when it spins."

"Sound? Most weapon-smiths prefer their weapons to be silent when they shift or move."

"I know! And I don't get it. If it's perfectly quiet, then you have the advantage of surprise, but what happens if it's a minor shift and you do it by accident? All of a sudden, you're reaching for a gun and whoops, you stab yourself with a dagger. If there is a unique sound, then you always know. And for Weiss's. Each barrel can be filled with a unique variation of dust. Or ammunition or whatever. She'll need to know which track will be released when she fires the trigger! She could look at it, but that takes time. Or, she can wait for the sound. A 'click' for the even turns and 'clack' for the odd ones. Now she just needs to remember what she started on and if it was a 'click' or a 'clack'. Not to mention the spinning is pitch perfect, so it sounds great too… Oh, sorry. Yang says I tend to ramble when I talk about weapons."

"That is quite alright. I find conversing with students about their greatest fascinations to be a fascination of my own. And a true blessing. There is nothing quite like seeing a young spirit discuss something they hold so close to their heart. I see it in you when you talk about your weapons. And I see it in your sister when she talks about you."

"Oh, umm thanks." Ruby's sheepish reply brought a round of gentle chuckles from the headmaster. Chuckles which Ruby joined with her own.

"I would very much like to see this weapon you described to me. As well as the sound it provides. While I cannot say for certain as to whether or not you have earned yourself a scholarship at this time, seeing such a blade may do wonders to help."

"I… don't have it. I built it for the contest so Weiss has it. I doubt it won, so maybe I can ask for it back, but I don't know. I'd show you the music toy the barrel's sound design was based on, but I lost the metal pin which goes _brrrrr_ and makes the sound when it hits the metal and wooden… spinny bits. Yes, those are my technical terms for it. Weiss said she'll find it and give it back to me, so maybe I can show it to you in the future."

"Do the two sound the same? The barrel and the musical toy?"

Ruby nodded. "Yes. Almost surprisingly so. Even though the music toy is made mostly from wood and the sword is, well, it's made from metal. But I spent like a week doing the math before the contest, so I got the ratios almost perfect. You would have to hear both side by side to be absolutely sure though."

The headmaster looked out into the front yard, seemingly deep in thought. Ruby decided it was best not to disturb him. He did a great deal to help her out, maybe without him even knowing it. It was nice to have a conversation with someone, even if it was mostly one sided.

"I can see that it is quite late, and while you may or may not have plans for your morning, my associate seemed it wise to plan out plenty more of these scholarship meetings. I do pray that I find any of them half as interesting as this. Thank you for the discussion, Miss Rose."

The headmaster stood up, balancing himself on his cane and walking back inside. A minute later, he returned to the door, accompanied by Professor Goodwitch and Yang.

"Thank you so much for coming over. It was great to meet you both," Yang said, shaking the deputy headmistress's hand in both of her own.

"We shall be deciding scholarship awardees as well as amounts in the coming weeks, so please make sure you check your mail for any letters from my office. Both of you, keep your grades up. Any specific requests we have for you, be it proof of work, or otherwise, will be sent by mail to you as well, prior to any scholarship letters." Professor Goodwitch was still all business. Strict and with hard eyes.

The headmaster's however, looked just as relaxed as they were when he had arrived. To Ruby, he was a lot more laid back and friendly than Professor Goodwitch.

"I wish you the best of luck in all your future endeavours, Miss Xiao Long. Miss Rose. I hope to see great things from the both of you."

"Thank you."

"Thanks."

With a final tilt of his head, the two faculty members of the prestigious Beacon University made their leave. Yang was left sighing and collapsing face-first into the couch, groaning about how nervous the whole situation had left her. Ruby however could only think back to what the headmaster had spoken with her about.

It had been a good day.


	25. Back to Normal

Ruby woke up feeling more well rested than she had in ages. It was another regular day for the sixteen-year-old. Yang was getting the two of them ready for school, packing two small lunches with a few extra goodies in Ruby's bag. Ruby changed and ran downstairs, shouting her good morning wishes to her big sister as she popped a slice of bread into the toaster.

It was not very often that both Ruby and Yang were wide awake in the morning. It had often been a strange and awkward cycle of one of them waking the other or both waking up angry at their alarms. Pulling out a few important ingredients from the fridge, including a banana and chocolate sauce, she got herself ready at the kitchen table, mouth already watering in preparation for her food.

"You look to be in a pretty good mood," Yang said as she folded up the tops of the lunch bags and placing them in the fridge.

Ruby could only smile, "Yup! Last night was great. Well, all of yesterday was great. Like a real dream come true. I never knew I could be so happy."

Ruby sighed, leaning her chin into her awaiting palms, staring into the room with unfocused dreamy eyes.

"It almost looks like you have a crush, Rubes."

"I do!"

Ruby's enthusiastic response nearly made Yang drop her mug. It did however, leave her choking and coughing.

"That sword I made for Weiss. Ugh, there is nothing quite like making something so amazing. But there were also so many super cool weapons there too! It was awesome Yang. I think I fell deeper in love with weapon-smithing. I didn't think that was possible!"

Yang chuckled, shaking her head in dismay. "Not exactly what I meant, Ruby."

"Huh?"

"I'll tell you when you're older."

"But I am older!" Ruby crossed her arms and gave Yang the best pout she could muster. The face was immediately dropped once she heard the telltale pop of her finished toast.

"Do you think we're going to get those scholarships?" Yang asked, steering the conversation in a more productive route.

Ruby hummed into her food. "I hope so," she said with a mouthful of toast and chocolate. Swallowing, she continued. "Like, I'm super scared that I won't get the full scholarship. I know you said not to worry about it, because I'll get to go to school no matter what, but I can't help it! You achieving your own ream rests solely on me achieving mine. It's… a lot of pressure."

Yang leaned in, giving her sister a one-armed hug. "I know it is. And I am sorry that that was how things had to be. You should have shared some of your smarty-pants genes. Maybe then I could have shared some of my hotness-genes."

Ruby stuck out her tongue, "I think I prefer my adorable ones, thank you very much. Maybe sharing some of your height would be nice."

"Don't worry Rubes. You'll grow into your own. And I'm still so sorry with how everything has to go. Just know that me achieving my dream doesn't rest on you, yours. If it doesn't work out, then I can still reach my dream. It might just take a few more years. And when I'm in school and you're a world-famous weapon-smith, you'll help me pay my way through, right?"

"Of course!"

"But let's not talk about those what-ifs. Because we all know you're too smart to not get anything other than a full ride. And I am just smart enough to get a scholarship too!"

"Maybe the circumstances one," Ruby said with a giggle.

"Hey! I can totally get the extra-curriculars one as well… maybe. Does work count as extracurriculars?"

"Maybe. I think it would have to be related to your major though. So, weapon-smithing for me and… huntressing? Huntsmaning? Yang, what's the word for doing a huntsman?"

"Se-"

"No, not that word!" Ruby quickly interrupted with a loud shout, annoyed with herself at having belatedly realized what she had asked.

"Hunting, Rubiroo," Yang laughed out.

Ruby rolled her eyes. She hated that feeling of having the correct word on the tip of her tongue, just not ever really remembering what it was exactly. _Doing a huntsman_. How much worse can you get in place of calling it hunting? Especially when being near Yang's sense of humour.

"But I think I get it. No hunting means no extracurricular scholarships. That sucks. But at least we know you're a shoo-in for it, little miss 'I'm going to build a giant sniper scythe that's heavier than I am just to see if I can' Rose."

"My sweetheart isn't that heavy! And I knew I could make her since I was seven. I'm just still… working out the kinks."

"And what sort of kinks would those be?"

"How to reduce the weight…" Ruby said with an overly dramatic sigh.

"And I bet the sword you made yesterday was just as heavy."

"It totally wasn't! It was perfectly balanced and light. Like, I could balance it perfectly on my finger. Okay, maybe not that light, but it was just a bit more than two pounds! Can you imagine that, Yang? That thing can probably slice through a brick wall like butter made from swiss cheese without a problem. Gosh I love that Myrtenaster. A rapier-revolver hybrid weapon, because-"

"It's always better with a gun," Yang interrupted with a sigh.

"It's always better with a gun," Ruby confirmed happily.

As Yang prepared to ask her little sister another question, there was a careful knock on the door.

"Wonder who that could be-oh." Yang's attitude immediately dropped as she opened the door. Awaiting, was Cinder Fall, dressed as elegantly as ever.

"Good morning, Miss Xiao Long. Little Miss Rose." Her voice was as silky and confident as ever. Even as Yang's grip on the door turned her fingers white.

"Cinder," Yang growled. "What do you want."

Cinder could only smile, quirking an eyebrow and running a finger through her thick black hair. "What ever could you mean by that? My loving tenants. I was just in the neighbourhood, hoping to see how my two favourite girls are doing this morning. And please remember what you are allowed to call me."

"We want nothing to do with you, _Miss Fall_. Now get off our property before I do something you'll regret."

Cinder's smile widened. "Now, now, Xiao Long. We both know that you would never risk your parents' house by attacking someone without provocation. Or was it your ability to join a university and become a… what was it again? Oh, right. A martyr."

"The word is Huntress, you overgrown pile of-"

"Yang!" Ruby squeaked, rushing over to her sister to hold her back, yet simultaneously using her for cover from Cinder.

"Hello there, Miss Rose. I hope you enjoyed your time off from work. I have been ever so generous, haven't I?"

"Ruby's not going back to work for you. Not if I have anything to say about it," Yang said through gritted teeth. Cinder could almost feel the rage in her voice, let alone what looked to be a flicker of red in her lilac eyes.

"Ruby?" Cinder turned her gaze away from Yang to look straight at the younger girl, who hid herself even further behind her big sister.

"I-I don't want to work for you anymore, Ci-Ci- Miss Fall."

"You heard the girl. Now back off."

Cinder took a step back and began walking away. That alluring smile still touching her lips, "I know when I'm not wanted. But do think it over, Miss Rose. I would hate to impose more on you in a time like this. Not when so much is at stake. I would hate to see your prospects _burn to a crisp_."

"Wait!" Ruby called out, darting in front of Yang, hand held up to stop their landlord.

"I-I'll do it."

"Like hell you will-"

"No Yang. I-I need to. She can make things so much harder. For the both of us. Just, please. Let me do this."

"Are you sure?" Yang knelt down, looking straight into Ruby's silver eyes, seeing them sparkle with unshed tears and fear.

"I am," Ruby replied, mustering up as much courage as possible. "I don't want her to do anything more to hurt us. And I got through this long while doing her chores. I think now that you know, I can get through it a little better."

"That's the Rose spunk I knew you had," Cinder giggled out.

Yang held her gaze with Ruby for one last second before marching up to Cinder. "Look here, _Miss Fall_. I know what you did to Ruby before and I know all about the deal you had with her. That's not going to play this time. You're going to reduce our rent like you had promised her before. And keep your lackeys on a tight leash. Because if you don't, I will. Got that?"

"Of course, of course," Cinder waved it off.

"No. This time, it'll be in writing. I learn from my mistakes," Yang smirked.

"I will have one of my… lackeys, as you so delicately put it, come by with a written agreement."

"I'll be sure to read through it with a finely picked comb. Now get out."

Yang stomped back inside, leading Ruby back in as well by the shoulder. The porch shook from the loud smack of the front door slamming into its frame.

Even so, Cinder just looked on at the Rose-Xiao Long household with a smile. "A rapier-revolver hybrid, you say?"


	26. Paintings

"Any luck with finding the contest winner, yet?" Blake asked, admiring the feel of Weiss's blade in her hands.

The sword was sharp at the tip, having poked herself one too many times on accident. It felt much lighter than it looked. Though Blake could not tell if that was due to the material used, or some masterwork done by the weapon-smith. She spun the revolving cylinders, listening to the click and frowning at the sound. She could not enjoy the metal clanging and how it made her ears flicker erratically on her head.

"I don't know why you chose this one. It sounds so annoying."

"Pray tell what you mean by that, Blake?" Weiss said in a faux stuck-up voice, all the while her attention remained on the forever unfinished painting in front of her. "I quite like the sound. It sounds… familiar in a way. Like a train along its tracks. Or a playing card in the spokes of a bicycle."

Blake snorted, "you put playing cards in the spokes of your bicycle?"

"Mother and father would have disowned me if I ever attempted to do such a thing," Weiss responded with real seriousness. "But, I've seen the movies. I know the sound. And what it's supposed to represent. Do you think I need more red in the hair?"

Weiss placed a finger on her chin and tilted her head to get a different look at her piece of art. In the last few days, she had an explosion of inspiration when it came to the face of her dreams. Lately, it seemed like she added more to the portrait every day, when before it was days or even weeks between painting sessions.

"Didn't his hair used to be closer to a dirty blonde?" Blake asked over her friend's shoulder.

"He did, but lately I've been thinking he was more of a redhead. Or very dark crimson."

"Your man's features are also rounding themselves out a bit as well."

"What do you mean?"

"The male of your dreams is starting to gain a little too much iron," Blake smirked.

"Fe-male. Hardy harr harr. Very funny. I don't know what has gotten into you over the last few days."

"I guess my girlfriend is starting to rub off on me lately." Blake blushed as she spoke.

It brought a smile to Weiss's face, seeing how happy her best friend was. Especially now that her and that Yang Xiao Long had officially become a couple. Truthfully, it had taken those two far too long to play the girlfriend card, in Weiss's opinion. If it were Weiss, she would have taken to calling her significant other her boyfriend or girlfriend, the moment the two decided to go on a first date.

She could not fathom the idea that someone would go on dates with another person, before becoming 'exclusive'. But at least Blake or Yang had mustered up the courage to ask.

"I'm glad you're doing well Blake. I really need to meet this girlfriend of yours already. Give her the Schnee stamp of approval."

Blake chuckled. "I wholly doubt she will receive the Schnee stamp of approval. Maybe the Weiss stamp, though."

"That's good to hear," Weiss said, dipping her paintbrush into the silver paint once more. With a delicate hand, she dotted the iris of the portrait with the colour, hoping to give the eyes pleasant silver flakes. But as she began dotting it, inspiration took hold once more and the eyes began to take on the unique colour.

"I like it," she said to herself.

"Anyways," Weiss spun to look at Blake, "I have no idea where to go next to find the sword's owner. It's not like Myrtenaster is a common name for a weapon, but when I looked the name up, nothing of relevance appeared."

"Can't you just check the list of contestants for a Myrtenaster?"

Weiss frowned and shook her head, "I'm afraid I cannot. My mother's been keeping a firm hold on the master list and I have not been able to find out who was there on my own. It's not like I would remember anyone that attended by name. Except for Cardin."

"And Ruby."

"Right, and her."

"Myrtenaster seems to be a mostly made up word. Most likely chosen because it sounded unique and noble with which to fit the Schnee name. And not so much as an ode to the blade's creator."

Weiss sighed, only perking up at feeling Blake place a gentle hand on her back.

"Don't worry. I'm sure you will remember something about the contestant eventually."

"it's an impossible task," Weiss said exasperatedly. "I should have realized it sooner, when mother allowed me to do it in the first place. Of course I won't find anything of note about the person, except for his last name. And even that has no use! Do you know how many individuals with the first, middle or last name Rose, in this city alone, not to mention any of the other cities or towns people may have come from?"

"I do, because you ranted this to me before, but I know you aren't listening while in this state-"

"-Eleven thousand, Blake! A thousand I could handle. Maybe two thousand. But eleven thousand? And those are just the names which appear in online directories. There are most definitely plenty more which I don't know about. And it's not like I can look up their names in our own databases, or economic portfolios, because of course mother thought ahead and locked them all away from me."

Weiss scowled loudly before tucking her head between her legs, nearly throwing paint on herself from the brush still held in a tight grip in her hand. "How is one person supposed to remember everybody that attended…"

"Maybe… maybe you don't need to remember everyone," Blake said slowly. "Maybe you don't need to be the sole person to try and remember everybody at the competition."

"I'm not sure what you mean."

"Ruby."

"Ruby?"

"Yes, she was there too. And I got the impression that she's fairly intelligent. Enough to remember some names or faces at least."

Weiss smirked, "how could you tell she's intelligent?"

"Weiss, I'm dating her sister. She gushes nonstop about the girl. She's two years younger than us and already applying to the weapon-smith program at Beacon University."

"Impressive."

"No Weiss. Impressive is that she's expected to get in. With a full tuition scholarship. Trust me. According to Yang, that girl knows her stuff."

Weiss was silent for a moment as she took in all that new information. "Wow. I did not expect that out of the dolt. She appeared to be a bit more of an adorable scatterbrained moron, than a gifted prodigy."

Blake chuckled, "adorable?"

"You know what I meant," Weiss said with a scowl. "Maybe I could ask her…"

After a moment more of thought, the white-haired heiress groaned. "And I still haven't found her stupid metal pin. I've been looking for that thing everywhere. It could have been tossed out with all the scrap, for all I know."

"Maybe we should go visit her to ask more about the piece. And you can ask for any information about your allusive contest winner."

"That's not a bad idea, Blake."

The two fell back into an easy and familiar silence. Blake went back to flipping Myrtenaster in her hands, admiring the feel of the blade and etching her fingers along the fine and finely incorporated details. And Weiss, back to her painting, adding in more hints of red and silver, now working on the lips, tilting them from their previous stern gaze into a more pleasant uptick. Just the barest hint of a smile. Taking a step away from it, she realized Blake might be right.

The face truly was looking a touch more feminine than it had been before. Not that she minded. She felt like the portrait of that person in her dreams was finally taking shape. Maybe not that day, or even in a month's time, would she be finished, but it was near to the end. She could almost taste its completion.

"You just want me to agree to go visit Ruby, so that you can go see Yang again. Isn't that right?"

Blake had the decency to blush. Yet still she remained silent on that regard. "This really is quite a beautiful weapon."

"Blake."

"The etch-work is quite spectacular."

"Blake."

"And can you see the detail in the handle? Hilt? It's leather but there's just a little bit of colour splashed into it. Different enough to stand out, but not so different as to look weird."

"Blake!"

"Oh alright. Fine. I want to see Yang again and I want you to meet her. Happy?" Blake acquiesced with a huff.

"Very much so," Weiss replied with a lofty smirk.

"And maybe I think you and Ruby can hit it off."

"And what pray tell, is that supposed to mean?"

"I think you know exactly what it means."

"Blake, you read too many fairy tales. Maybe I should actually give you some work to do as my servant instead of letting you lounge around and read. Get you to clean my room or something."

"And then you will have no idea what to do with your own free time, Weiss," Blake's smile was all Weiss needed to know that she was not going to fall for the bluff.

"Fine, call Yang and see if they're free this weekend."


	27. Deeper Insights

Blake ringing the doorbell set off a remarkable chain of events inside the Xiao Long household. The loud doorbell was followed quickly by a distinctly Ruby shout and the pitter-patter of feet rushing up and down a flight of stairs to accompany the cries of, "Yang! They're here, they're here, they're here!"

This was soon followed by a distinctly Yang shout of, "tell them to go away! I'm not ready yet!" and then the slamming of what was most likely a bedroom or bathroom door. Continued running and supposed freaking out inside continued, pausing for a moment as the top of Ruby's head appeared in the window, only to disappear less than a second later.

"Yang they're here! What do I do!"

Weiss and Blake looked at each other, unsure if they were concerned with the goings on inside the house, or seconds away from bursting into laughter.

"Open the door!" Yang shouted, with a slam of a door and the loud footsteps of someone stomping downstairs.

And finally, the front door opened.

"Hello, how'd'you do?" Ruby asked in her calmest voice, leaning on the door for support. Weiss was fairly certain it was emotional support than anything physical.

"Should we go away since Yang's not ready yet? Or…" Blake let Ruby's mind fill in the rest.

The young girl's posture immediately straightened, and a crimson blush worked its way up her neck to brighten her cheeks. "How much did you…"

"Oh, everything," Blake replied with a smirk.

"Well, it was nice to see you again, Blake. You too Weiss. I'm going to go kill myself from embarrassment now. Tell Yang she gets all my things."

"Hey, hey. It was by no means _that_ bad. I've definitely heard worse coming from Weiss's room," Blake said as both a way to calm Ruby down and embarrass her friend.

It worked flawlessly in both regards.

"How dare you!"

"Heh, thanks Blake."

"Now where is the pretty kitty!" Yang shouted in her best sing-song voice as she finally made her way to the door, arm draping over her little sister.

"I told you not to call me that."

"Technically we aren't in public, so I complied with all your instructions," Yang smirked, relishing in seeing her girlfriend blush cutely.

"And this must be the famous ice queen." Her attention was on Weiss. "She's a lot shorter in person."

"I'm still growing!" Weiss admonished.

"No, Ruby is still growing. Actually ya. Weiss, Ruby, stand back to back. I want to see how much taller Ruby is."

Weiss growled in anger, "why I would never! You disrespectful brute!"

"Big words from such a little package. Hey, isn't that the girl that spilled paint all over herself after bumping into you Rubes?"

Yang cackled loudly over the protests of both girls.

"Ruby ran into me!"

"Weiss already forgave me!"

This was not going how Weiss had wanted it to go. How could Blake's girlfriend and Ruby's sister be so rude? The two continued firing insults at each other, which only seemed to make Weiss grow angrier, and Yang connivingly happier.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you. Enjoying picking on someone above your station for once. You obviously have no ability to speak with any decorum."

"I speak just fine, princess. I just didn't need to memorize a thesaurus to hold a conversation."

"My, I'm surprised you knew what a thesaurus was. I would have expected you to believe it was a dinosaur."

"Yang made me think it was a dinosaur until I was seven," Ruby meekly whispered, which brought a small chuckle from Blake. Weiss and Yang were too embroiled in their own petty arguments to have heard.

Giving Ruby a quick look to see that they were in agreement, Blake walked up next to Yang, placing a hand on her shoulder, the other stroking her hair and whispering into her ear. "Hey Yang. Did you miss me?"

Immediately, Yang paused whatever critique of Weiss she was about to make and turned to her girlfriend with a smile. "How could I not?"

"Why not say hello to my best friend Weiss. If I ever come over again, you're going to be seeing a lot of her."

"Oh, alright. If you like her, then she can't be that bad."

On the other side of the doorway, Ruby was next to Weiss, latching onto her arm, and gently stroking it. "Hey Weiss. Did you miss me? Did you miss me?"

Weiss huffed, "No, Ruby. But it is good to see you again."

"That means you missed me! Do you like Yang?"

"She's such a brute and-"

"She's also the nicest and best big sister ever. Can you say hello to her? Then I want to show you something awesome."

"Not unless she-"

"Please? For me?" Ruby asked, reaching for a world record puppy dog pout.

Weiss paused for a second, unsure what to do. She stuttered, her brain incapable of properly processing what was going on. Then she scowled. "Fine."

Her attention back on Yang, she held out a hand, "it is a pleasure to meet you. I am Weiss Schnee."

Yang rolled her eyes but grabbed onto Weiss's extended appendage. "Nice to meet you too. I'm Yang Xiao Long. This is my sister Ruby, and that is my girlfriend Blake."

"Yes, I'm quite aware of who Ruby and Blake are."

Yang shrugged, "just letting you know how the chips lay."

"Well, Blake is my best friend and Ruby is my… she's my acquaintance."

"Ya! I'm her acquaintance! Wait, no. Hey! I thought we're friends." Ruby pouted for a second before descending once more into smiles. "Anyways, come on Weiss. I have something amazing to show you. Bye Yang and Blake! Don't do anything you don't want your little sister to walk in on!"

As Ruby tugged Weiss towards the backyard, they could hear Yang shout back, "that has never happened before, and you know it!"

Ruby giggled as she pulled on Weiss's hand, leading her to the family's backyard.

"So where are you taking me?"

"It's a surprise! I know you'll love it."

"I don't like surprises, Ruby."

"Of course you do. You had a big competition to give yourself a surprise weapon!"

Weiss opened and closed her mouth repeatedly, truly stumped by the younger girl holding her hand. "That… may actually be true."

"I know Weissy better than she knows herself!"

"Never call me that again."

Without a proper response in the affirmative, Ruby stopped in front of what looked to be a garden shed. Raising an eyebrow at her, Ruby adorably rolled her eyes and jiggled with the lock for a minute.

As she threw open the door, she yelled out, "ta-da!"

Weiss stepped passed Ruby to look at the inside of the shed. Without realizing it, her jaw had dropped. She had expected to find… well, she was unsure what she was expecting to find, but this was definitely not it.

All along the walls of the shed were pictures. Drawings and blueprints of dozens, if not hundreds of weapons of all shapes and sizes. Even the singular small window which would have let light into the small area was covered with either drawings or calculations. She could barely understand what was being solved, thanks to the almost incessant lack of actual numbers, with only variables and short-hand used.

There was a table inside, and it too was filled with stuff. From more blueprints, to pieces of metal, both large and small, as well as oil grease, rubber bands, hammers, screw drivers and even what looked to be a rudimentary 3D printer.

Under the table was a box of completed or half-completed weapons. As Weiss reached down to pick up something in the box, she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Erm, I promised I wouldn't let anybody else touch their weapons." Ruby said sheepishly.

"What do you-"

"Oh! I help huntsmen in the area fix up their weapons if they get damaged! It's my favouritest hobby in the entire world. And doing this helps me pay for all my things! It's perfect so I don't use up too much of our money and I can help chip in when we're running low on rent. Though Yang hates it when I do that."

Weiss nearly flinched at hearing that. To know that Ruby and Yang had so little money that she had to decide between rent and her hobbies. Though, Weiss chastised herself for the reaction. She had already known that they were poor. She had helped fund the girl's ticket to her own competition after all.

"They look quite impressive," Weiss decided to compliment, returning the conversation back to the redhead's hobby.

Ruby smiled, "thanks! It makes me happy to see so many people liking my work. It's why I've always wanted to be a weapon-smith when I grew up! It's why I chose Beacon University as well. Best program ever! And if I get in, I'll still be with Yang. She's applying to the huntsman program there as well."

"Interesting," Weiss commented. "I know that Blake is hoping to go to Beacon University as well. Maybe the three of you can have classes together. Or at least lunches. Or study sessions."

"Ha! Study sessions would be really funny. We'd all be taking totally different classes," Ruby giggled, bringing a light smile to Weiss, who quickly hid it behind a glare. "So, if Blake is going to BeaconU, will you be there too?"

"No," Weiss said, shaking her head and allowing herself to frown in disappointment. "I will be attending Atlas Academy. It's the best school for my program after all."

"That's good."

"And it's not like I have much of a choice in the matter."

"Why not?" Ruby stepped a little closer to her.

"Well," Weiss continued, trying not to be too distracted by the younger girl's true curiousity in her life. "Atlas Academy is a university for the elites. Those of wealth, prestige and power. Akin, or at least as close as possible, to the Schnees. It would be… unfit for me to attend someplace filled with commoners."

"Aw, that sucks. I think we'd have fun together there." Weiss could only think about how cute Ruby's sad face was. It almost made her want to hug the girl.

Almost.

"So, you know about my hobby. What do you do?" And with that, Ruby's expression changed as she asked the question.

"Oh," Weiss said, taken aback by the directness. She had many options to choose from. She had often been asked this question, or a variant of it by the wealthy suitors she had attracted, or those hoping to get close to her. She had often responded with what was to be expected of her. She enjoyed her singing, or her studies. Sometimes she walked through the gardens and admired the flowers. She read poetry, alongside the masters in economics, business and law. And the all-too-common answer which all expected of someone in her position; she enjoyed shopping and shopping sprees.

But Weiss didn't want to answer Ruby with these bland and boring answers. She was standing inside the place which held Ruby's closest and most favourite passion. She didn't want to lie to her.

"I enjoy art," she finally decided on revealing. "I've always loved to paint. It's… been something I have enjoyed for a very long time, though not many people know about it. Aside from Blake of course. I like to paint in my free time."

"That's so cool! I don't know much about painting, but I like art too. Just look at all my pictures." Ruby beamed as she spread out her arms.

"I don't think that blueprints properly constitute art."

"How dare you!" Ruby said in mock despair. "My babies are beautiful and full of artistic… splendour!"

Weiss chuckled, "don't hurt yourself with such a big word."

Ruby stuck out her tongue, which only increased Weiss's chuckling.

"Whatever. What did you want to talk about for coming here?"

"Oh right. Yes, Ruby, I had come to speak with you about two things in particular. The first being the metal piece you had asked me to find in my estate."

"Have you-"

"No, not yet. I was hoping to ask you more about it and what it looked like?"

"Heh, you could have just texted or called me to ask. It's just a small piece of metal. No longer than my thumb. With a hooked end and varying widths. It would probably be easier if I texted you a picture of it."

"How could I have called or texted you without your number?" Weiss asked, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow.

"Do you want my number?" Ruby asked innocently.

"Umm… ya. I guess I do."

The two awkwardly exchanged numbers, sending a 'hello' text to make sure they get them right. The two stared down at their phones, letting the silence between them linger. At least for Weiss, it did not feel awkward or at all stifling. It was a calming silence. One which felt comforting and set her at ease.

"Thanks," she finally said. "I'll continue looking for it."

"Thank you. I know you must be busy. With your painting and everything. Maybe I could see it when it's done?"

"Maybe," Weiss said slowly. "I don't want my family to know about it. They tend to take my interests and force the excitement and pleasure out of them."

"That's unfair."

"It is what it is," Weiss shrugged. "Like attending Atlas Academy, I do not have much choice in the matter."

"That's unfair too! Like with BeaconU, I'm going there because it's awesome, but also because that's where my mom and dad went when they were younger." Ruby's expression seemed to drop at the mention of her parents.

"Where are they?"

"They're gone. It happened a long time ago, but it still makes me sad. Yang too. It's why we don't really talk about them too much. It's… hard. But I like to think that they're watching us and are proud. I really hope they're proud of me."

Ruby quickly rubbed away tears which lingered at the corner of her eyes.

"Anyways, that's the past. BeaconU's my future."

Weiss held up a hand, but quietly dropped it. She had no idea how to help the girl, let alone console her. It was strange. Weiss and Ruby might be very different, but there was one thing they had in common, or at least Weiss believed so. They lacked any real parents. Ruby's, to death. Weiss's, to their own pleasures.

Weiss felt bad about wishing that she was in Ruby's situation instead of her own. At least with dead parents, she would have the freedom to do whatever she pleased. Not having to worry about conforming to whatever behaviours or rules her parents had restricted her to.

And then she felt bad for thinking so highly of Ruby's situation. Her parents were deceased. Ruby would have no doubt wished desperately that they were alive like Weiss's even if they were strict.

The two girls continued to talk. About their hobbies and their homes. About Yang and Blake and a whole manner of other things which left both of them smiling and happy.

All too soon, there was a knock on the shed door and Blake's voice telling them it was time to leave.

"It was a… pleasant time discussing with you again. I shall endevour to find your lost metal piece."

"Thanks Weiss," Ruby said with a charming smile. "And I'll try to remember anything about the swords I saw at the competition."

"Please do."

Suddenly, Weiss felt two arms wrapped tightly around her. It took a second to realize that Ruby had pulled her into a tight hug, placing her chin on Weiss's shoulder, breathing gently into her ear. It sent a tingle through her spine.

"Make sure you call or text me."

Weiss could only nod in response, her eyes wide at having been hugged by the girl.

The white-haired heiress remained speechless when Blake dragged her into the limousine, closing the door and waving goodbye to the two sisters as they sped off.

"So, how was your time with Ruby?"

Weiss looked down at the open palms in her lap. "I think…"

She closed her hands into fists. "I think I have a sudden urge to paint some more."


	28. The Room Where it Happens

The car pulled up to the Schnee Estate, stopping right at the front entrance. A servant dressed in a fitted tuxedo opened the doors to let out the three guests, all dressed in their finest. Almost instinctively, two guests fell a step back from their superior, standing on her right and left side. There was no way to mistake who was in charge of the trio. Her raven black hair and gold eyes were noticeable wherever she went. As was the soft, seductive smile perpetually etched onto her lips. Cinder Fall was a woman who knew what she wanted and would do whatever was necessary to get exactly that.

"Welcome to the Schnee Estate, Miss Fall," said the servant, bowing his head to the woman, while leading her and her retinue into the mansion. "Please, come this way. His lord and ladyship are taking tea in the second library."

Cinder nodded her understanding and proceeded forward.

"Oh, the second library. Of course," came Mercury's snivelling comment, only to receive a smack on the back of the head by Emerald.

"Shut up."

"Don't want to upset your crush, that right Em?" Mercury finally silenced himself following another smack to the head and a side-eyed glare from their boss.

Mercury huffed and rubbed his neck, glaring at his green haired associate, who chose to not look at him for the entire rest of the walk. The servant finally stopped outside a pair of large wooden doors with fancy bronzed handles. He carefully knocked twice and waited patiently for a response from inside, to signal his entry.

"Here you are, Miss Fall. I shall return in a few minutes with tea and coffee for you and your companions."

He bowed his head once more and turned to leave.

Cinder looked at her underlings harshly. "You don't speak unless spoken to. And don't incessantly flirt with one another during this meeting. I can kill you. But the Schnees can ruin you. Is that understood?"

"Yes ma'am."

"I do not _flirt_ with that cretin!"

Another glare quieted the two of them. With one last sigh of disappointment, the double doors opened, and the group proceeded inside.

The room itself was quite large, though narrow, with a single floor to ceiling window which made up much of the furthest wall. A large bookcase stood on either side of the room, filled with books and other trinkets that looked to be quite valuable. The center of the room held five leather chairs, all with their own dark oak coffee table and facing each other surrounding a lower table covered with a white silk tablecloth. A ceramic tear kettle was placed squarely in the middle of the table, along with a tray of a few sweets, all untouched.

Of the five seats, two were filled. Jacques Schnee sat directly facing the door, so that his was the first seat anyone saw upon entry. He sat with his hands gripping the armrests and back against the back pillows. His expression was both calm, yet deadly serious, making for quite an imposing figure.

His wife sat on his left, in her own chair. While he looked straight ahead at the group, Willow Schnee sat upright, one leg over the other, sipping delicately on her small teacup, filled with the steaming liquid. As the three of them entered the room, she peered at them and gave a pleasant, small smile.

None of them were fooled. They all knew that of the two, Willow was the one to be more wary of.

"Welcome, guests. Please, take a seat and make yourselves comfortable. Another pot of tea and cups for you all will be out momentarily." Willows words were comforting and sweet.

"Thank you for allowing us into your home, Mister and Missus Schnee." Cinder spoke as alluring as ever.

Cinder settled in so that Mercury and Emerald could sit on either side of her. Mirroring a combination of the two Schnees, she sat back in the chair, resting her hands on the arm rests and back to the pillows, crossing her legs for maximum relaxed comfort. To Mercury, she still looked to be in control.

"As we discussed earlier, I know that you have something that may… intrigue us?" Jacques Schnee said, his eyes not leaving Cinder's own.

Cinder nodded, "that I do. But, I was interested in your reasoning behind your little competition."

Jacques grumbled. "It was no competition of mine. It was all my foolish daughter's."

"A smart move for sure. I am somewhat proud of her finally taking some initiative in her own life," Wilow remarked, "even if it was entirely in vain."

"That girl will be married to Winchester's brat even if I have to force her at gunpoint. She will not ruin this merger for me."

"Hush darling," Willow tutted, reaching over to place a delicate hand on her husband's forearm. "I would hate to think what Cinder thinks of us if we were to force our daughter to do anything by way of weapon."

"I heard that Cardin was a famed and talented weaponsmith. A sure win for any competition involving the smithing practice," Cinder decided to comment. Her unasked question made Jacques scowl and hands clench into fists.

Mercury silently chuckled, receiving a stern glare from Emerald, who no doubt wished she were closer to kick him.

"Mister Winchester may have… overestimated his son's talents." Willow said, repositioning her legs, one over the other. "It was decided earlier on that his weapon proposal for the competition was slightly… underwhelming."

"Don't mince words, woman," Jacques growled. "The boy might as well only be in Atlas Academy for weapon smithing because his father gave a generous donation to the school. There is a reason we hired some-"

"What my dearest husband is trying to say, is that we are quite upset to have been lied to. And that our dear Weiss chose a weapon made from someone else. By now she will be realizing that her situation is futile in finding her victor. Unless she happens to possess a way to find her. Her address and details weren't even in our ticket sales records, so we've had not means of contacting her and offering to buy her silence."

"Damn that Rose…" Jacques snarled.

"Rose you say?" Cinder smiled delicately, relaxing herself further into her seat. "Would this weapon of hers be a… Emerald darling, what was the description again?"

"A rapier-revolver hybrid weapon, ma'am." Emerald perked up at having been called on by her boss. Mercury had to stifle more chuckles.

"Precisely. It seems as though our interests are momentarily aligned," Cinder continued with a small nod of gratitude directed towards Emerald, who managed to hide a blush.

"Indeed," Willow nodded.

"Get rid of the Rose girl," Jacques ordered.

"If I could have solved my own issue by killing her, I would have already done just that. But you have something I need. And I happen to have some information that may be of use to you. Something which will be a fair trade for what I need done."

"Information is power after all," Willow Schnee said with a chuckle.

There was a knock on the door, followed by a procession of servants carrying trays of tea and plates of cut fruit. As one, the servants surrounded the group and placed the trays on the central coffee table, which mercury immediately made a grab for, popping a grape into his mouth. Less than a minute later, the doors closed, and silence returned to the second library.

The conversation stalled as Cinder poured herself a cup of tea, taking a small sip to ensure it was to her liking, and placing it on the table next to her.

"Delightful."

"Yes, it truly is. And it seems like we have much to discuss. It may be best if we keep this conversation just to those it necessitates."

"Perhaps you are correct. Emerald, Mercury, feel free to tour the estate. Be on your best behaviours."

"But-"

"Best behaviours, Emerald. Keep Mercury in line."

Emerald's head dropped, "yes, ma'am."

The doors closed on Mercury and Emerald, the last thing they heard being from Cinder's lips, "there happens to be a particularly troublesome contract…"

"You think they have a liquor storage we can ransack?" Mercury asked.

Emerald could only respond with a sigh and a smack to his head. "You are a pain. Truly."

"Thanks. I try."

Without another word, Mercury shoved his hands in his pockets and chose a direction to start walking in. He whistled loudly, drowning out the criticism and orders Emerald was giving him. Why would he care what she was saying? It's not like she was above him in station or anything. She was just another grunt, like him. The only difference between the two of them, was that he was sane enough to not try and get into their boss's pants.

After making a few more turns at random, he arrived into a central open-air plaza. It was nice, so he left the controlled temperature of the mansion and ventured into the great outdoors. From the looks of things, this was the place that the weapons smithing contest had been held. While all the tables and massive pieces of machinery had been removed, there were still noticeable imprints in the grass from where the ground had bare all the weight. The area itself still looked to be needing a bit of cleaning, with pieces of scrap metal and excess handheld tools strewn around the area.

As he walked, he managed to kick something small which made a gentle metallic ringing sound. "Hmm," he muttered, kneeling down and picking up a small piece of metal. It was small, with a hooked end and a few bends to it. All in all, it was probably shorter than a finger. As he flicked it, it reverberated and made a pleasant sound.

"Huh, neat."

With a shrug, he placed it into his pocket.


	29. Nightingales and Slippers

Ruby's life had become a series of opposites. She spent most of her days tired from handling Cinder's dirty laundry and plethora of other chores the night before. But Yang knew about it and so the two could feel better, together. Cinder made her too busy to keep up with her weapon-smithing hobby, so much so that she was starting to lose customers, but she spent every day for a long while texting or calling Weiss.

Weiss could not find her music piece, but neither could Ruby really remember anything about anyone at the competition. And besides, the two had talked about so much more besides weapon-smithing and competitions. A fact that had really and truly surprised her. She was Ruby Rose, weapon-smith supreme. The girl who lived and breathed the stuff.

Yang always said that her blood was really machine oil and bones were spare parts. But talking with Weiss? Surprisingly, she and the heiress to the richest family in the world got along really well.

Was it because of how well Blake and Yang got along? Well, Ruby feared that possibility at the start. Until Weiss shot down that thought with a few harsh, but well-meaning words.

Ruby guessed it also helped that whenever Blake wanted to come over, Weiss would be there too. While she had never been invited to visit or sleep over at her friend's house, she had given the white-haired girl the offer sleep over at her own. This idea seemed to come as a surprise to Weiss, who had never once heard of a sleepover before. In the end, for fear that news of the blossoming friendship would make its way to her parents, it was decided that it would be best to stick with what they had been doing these past few weeks.

That was alright with Ruby. As long as she got to message Weiss as often as she wanted. Which she did. Even if she was pretty sure that she was annoying the heiress.

Especially at that very moment while Ruby was in class, sending message after message to her friend.

_Can I please, please pretty please see your painting?_

_No._

_Aww… Why not?_

_I don't like showing it to anybody. And most definitely not until it has been complete._

_Then why do you show it to Blake?_

_How do you know that?_

_Yang told me._

_Is it too late to request that she breaks up with your sister?_

_It is!_

_Well, then I show it to her because she is my best friend._

_Then what am I? Chopped liver?_

_Pardon?_

_… Nevermind. Am I not your best friend too?_

_No Ruby. You're different._

_How?_

Ruby waited for a response for a moment, hiding her scroll underneath her desk as her teacher walked by. Still no reply. That was fine with her. Weiss often did just stop responding in the middle of a conversation. She always apologized later and promised not to do it again. It was cute of her.

If Ruby were to guess, Weiss probably had a tutor come in for her lessons or something. It was so cool that Weiss had tutors to teach her. Ruby wondered what it would have been like to be born as rich as that. So rich that their home had a backyard in the middle of their house. She was confident that there was a pool somewhere in that estate that she just hadn't been able to find during the competition. It was probably in the parts that contestants were not allowed through.

That just meant that once Ruby finally convinced Weiss to let her come over to hang out, she would have a mission to find it.

The bell rang and Ruby breathed out a sigh of relief. Another day finally done. She picked up her bag and headed for the door, falling behind the groups of friends chatting their way to their lockers. Conversations often turned towards movies they planned to see over the weekend, or what new parties people were throwing.

She rarely involved herself in them, not just because she lacked the necessary conversational skills to handle them properly. But also because the only topics on her mind were Beacon University; a topic of more interest to those graduating that year, than those only partway through high school, or Weiss. And she doubted anybody would want to know about Weiss.

Okay, she was lying to herself. They all wanted to know about Weiss. It had been a strange day when she told her classmates that she had met the heiress. But they were more fascinated with her love life, or what clothes she wore, or any other super shallow topic. And what she did want to tell them about. How she was so poised and collected, yet still vulnerable. How she painted in her free time and remembered the names of many of her own staff. How her secret best friend (aside from herself!) was her own servant who liked to snip at Weiss as much as Weiss loved to snip at her.

But no. Those things were a secret. Something that she promised Weiss she would never tell anyone. And she would not lose her one close friend's trust just to become closer with a few classmates who she would probably never see again after that year.

At least she hoped so.

"When is that letter coming?" She quietly asked herself, running her fingers through her hair.

Her walk home from school was pleasant enough. That being, there was no rain or wind to damper her already tenuous mood. As soon as she reached her house, she checked the mailbox. With a whine, she closed it back up. Still nothing there. She had checked the mail for the letter from Beacon, every day since their meeting with the headmaster and head of admissions. She was sure it would be coming soon.

Any day now.

"Oh well," she said to herself, glumly. "Maybe tomorrow."

Now that the best part of her day was over, it was back to work for her. Opening her front door, she dropped her bag off and shut it without stepping a foot inside. She had no time for that. Not anymore. It was right to Miss Fall's house for her.

At least Miss Fall was kind enough to start messaging her, her daily chores. And it looked like a pretty short list! Ruby half-skipped in excitement. If she as lucky, she would be done before Yang came home from work and the two of them could have a nice late supper.

Using the key under a rock, she stepped into her landlord's house. As she grabbed the feather duster from the closet she felt her phone buzz. It was another message from Weiss.

_You're such a dolt, Ruby. I'll be seeing you._

Ruby smiled, holding her scroll close to her chest. She knew that Weiss liked her. They were great friends, no doubt about it. Now with a happy hum, she began her first task of the day. A little dust around the windowsills, and some hiding in the corners of the many tables and desks. She had lost track of time quite quickly, thanks to her song.

As she hummed the tune, a few words she remembered would appear, before slowly fading back into her happy humming.

"Sing sweet nightingale

Sing sweet nightingale.

Hmm hmm hmm.."

Next was cleaning the tiled floors of the kitchen. The thought of her landlord slaving away over a hot stove brought a giggle from the girl. No, Miss Fall would most likely have Emerald or Mercury do it. Though, thinking of either of them made her laugh just as hard as thinking of Cinder. For a second she tried to think of Weiss in the kitchen, a cute apron around her waist and her long, beautiful hair tied back in a cute ponytail. Stirring a pot over the stove, humming a tune eerily similar to the one Ruby was at that moment, while an imaginary Ruby was doing her work.

She shook that thought from her head. No, if it were a choice between the two of them, it would be Ruby working in the kitchen, while Weiss was doing her work.

Why they would be living together was a question Ruby didn't bother asking herself. It made little sense, but how often did dreams ever make sense?

All too soon, her chores were complete. And not a minute past nine. Ruby had just enough time to get home and start heating up some leftovers in the oven for when Yang returned.

When Yang finally did slam open the door, she looked tired, but pleased with herself.

"Hey Yang. How was work?"

"Not bad, Rubes. Long day." Yang hung up her jacket, walking over to Ruby and giving her a big kiss on her forehead.

Ruby responded with a tight hug of her own.

"How was Cinder?"

"I think she's running out of nasty things to do to me."

"Took her long enough, that witch."

Ruby giggled, knowing Yang only said 'witch' for her sake. Yang sat down hard on a chair around the kitchen table. She closed her eyes for a moment and let out a slow breath. As she opened them, she narrowed in on her little sister.

"Ruby, something came for us."

Ruby gasped. "Is it…?"

Yang slowly nodded, placing two sealed enveloped on the table. "Please just… don't open them yet. I'm scared what they'll say. So… I have something I've been working on that will hopefully balance out the news. If it's not what we're hoping for."

Ruby gave a solemn nod, taking a seat opposite Yang's as her elder sister went upstairs to fetch the gift.

It was a small purple cardboard box, no bigger than her own palm, carefully wrapped with a red ribbon. Yang placed it in front of Ruby with a sad smile.

Ruby carefully traced her fingers over the ribbon and bumps of the cardboard. This looked like a lot of work to go through, just for a small cheer-up gift. Removing the ribbon she looked inside.

Two rolled up strands of cloth.

"What's this?"

"I know that your favourite sweater was ruined. Mom's sweater was torn up. But, I could never throw it out. It meant so much to you, to both of us. So… here's what I was able to salvage from it. Two ribbons. Long enough for a hairband or two. I thought that if you couldn't wear her sweater, at least you could have something that belonged to her still. To feel her around you always, you know?"

Ruby could feel the tears falling before she even realized she had started crying. At once she shakily lifted one ribbon from the box and tied a short ponytail in her already very short hair. She hiccuped into a teary giggle. "I-I need to grow out my hair."

The two ran into a tight hug, tears falling freely between them.

"I love it Yang. Thank you so, so much."

"Anytime Rubes. I love you so, so much."

Ruby pulled back a little, "is the other one for you?"

"They're both yours Rubes. You can do whatever you want with them."

"I want you to have that one. She was your mom too."

"Thanks Ruby."

Their hug continued. There was safety in each other's arms. Safety and assurance that the other would always be there for them. When together, nothing could stop them. They were the Rose-Xiao Longs. Undefeatable no matter what. Held together with the unbreakable bond of sisterhood.

At last it was time to look at the letters in front of them, Two letters, one addressed to each sister, both from Beacon University.

"Together?"

"Together."

The room was silent, but for the scratches of paper ripping open to unleash their hidden contents. They each silently read through their own letters.

"I… I got in. A circumstantial scholarship," Yang said in a voice just above a whisper.

Ruby looked back at Yang with a shocked expression of her own. "I got a full ride."

"What?"

"A full scholarship. I-it says it right here. I got in with a full tuition scholarship. I-I just need to show them proof of my sound system I used for Weiss's weapon. But I got in."

And now the two were hugging and crying again, but with large smiles on their faces.

"We did it. Our lives can only get better from here. We did it."


	30. Confirmation Through Canvas

Weiss was smiling as she danced around her room to the music playing lightly from her scroll. Sitting on her bed with a book, her head bouncing along with the music was Blake. The two were in pretty great moods. For Blake, she had a date with her girlfriend coming up in a few days. For Weiss, she was painting. That, and her scroll continuously buzzed with new messages from Ruby. After every brush stroke, she danced her way back to her scroll to smile at whatever childish or humorous thing came from that girl's head and return a quick reply.

Both of them were happy for a secondary reason as well. The Schnee parents were away from the estate. They had decided to take a business trip together that would last at least a week. To where, they hadn't bothered to tell their daughter and Weiss was not bothered enough to care. All that mattered was that they were gone.

And them being gone meant two very incredible things.

The first and foremost in her mind, was that she had the freedom to paint, or sing or talk to Blake without hiding it. The second, though just as relevant, was that she would have the opportunity to invite her new, but surprisingly close friend to her home.

Weiss broke out into another smile as she replied to her message from Ruby.

"What are you texting your girlfriend about?" Blake asked, peering over her book.

"We're just talking about my painting. She really wants to see it." Weiss replied, tapping away at her scroll with the same happy smile. Once she clicked send, she glared at her best friend. "And she's not my girlfriend. We are purely friends."

"Are you going to show it to her?"

"No," Weiss shook her head. "At least… not until I'm sure it's complete. I don't want her to see something so unfinished."

Blake rolled her eyes. "It took me months before you warmed up to me enough to let me know that you even painted, let alone see you in action. And you've known Ruby for how long? A few weeks? Maybe a month or two?"

"It was longer than that," Weiss shot back. "She did spill red paint on my dress a couple months ago."

"I still can't believe you're friends with her. I'm happy that you are, truly. But it's a little funny to remember all the complaining you did that day. And here she is now. Winning the icy heiress's heart."

"She's doing no such thing!" Weiss's scroll buzzed once more. Her eyes went wide. "Blake! What do I do? What do I say?"

She shoved the scroll into Blake's face.

_… Nevermind. Am I not your best friend too?_

Weiss made sure Blake read a little bit above Ruby's final message, so she had some of the context to their conversation. Weiss could feel Blake's silent judgement and almost yanked her scroll back from her best friend.

Finally, Blake's eyes flicked up to Weiss's.

"And what's the issue here?"

"What do I say?"

Blake hummed, "it's not like it's a complicated topic. She wants to know if you're her best friend and you don't feel that way.

"Or do you?" Blake smirked.

Weiss blushed. Choosing instead to ignore it, as well as the rhythmic beating in her chest, she flicked her hair and walked back to her painting. "Ruby is not my best friend. Not like you are."

"But you're still friends right?"

"Of course."

"Good friends?"

"It seems so."

"Close friends?"

"… yes?"

"Do you feel closer to her than to me?" Blake finally asked.

"No!" Weiss barked out. "Of course not. But with Ruby, it feels… different."

"Then tell her that." Blake replied, holding out Weiss's scroll to her.

With a calming breath, Weiss did just that. She sent a quick response to Ruby. _No Ruby. You're different._

As soon as she clicked send, a new wave of panic filled her. "This makes it sound like I have a crush on her or something!"

Blake couldn't help but to break out into laughter. "Don't you?"

Weiss frowned and glared at her servant and friend, "I have no idea what gave you that idea."

Her scroll buzzed once more, but for the first time that day, it was left unanswered as the two girls continued their staring contest, waiting for the loser to speak first. Without breaking eye contact, Blake nodded towards the painting.

When Weiss only took on a confused expression, she nodded once more.

"My painting?" Weiss finally acquiesced.

"Notice anything strange about it?"

The two looked at Weiss's painting. The one that she had spent many months working on, a few brush strokes at a time.

"I don't see anything…"

"It looks quite feminine, doesn't it?"

"So?" Weiss crossed her arms, "you aren't the only person who can like women."

Blake rolled her eyes again at that. Weiss believed that her friend seemed to be doing that a lot, lately.

"Notice anything about her? Anything that might be reminiscent of someone you know?"

Weiss could only stare at her painting. "It's made up of people from my dreams. It's supposed to represent my perfect person."

"What colour hair does your quote unquote 'perfect person' have?"

"Dark red. Maybe black. I was going for someone with hair so dark red that it looked black outside of the light."

"And her eyes?"

Weiss looked closer.

"Silver-" Weiss rushed on, keeping Blake from interrupting her, "-but many people have silver eyes."

"Any that you know? Anyone comes to mind when you think dark red hair, silver eyes and female?"

Blake watched as Weiss slowly connected the dots in her head. From a furrowed brow, to surprised eyes and finally a heavy blush on her cheeks.

"R-Ruby Xiao Long."

"Mhmm," Blake hummed with a nod.

"My painting looks like Ruby."

"It does."

"Ruby Xiao Long is the girl of my dreams." Weiss could only gaze at her painting, picking up on more and more details in it that she had somehow missed. The gentle slope of her cheekbones and the light smile. Those happy eyes which Ruby always made right before she was about to laugh. The paleness of her face and fullness of her lips. That striking silver which Weiss had been captivated by the first time the two truly met and spoke to one another, back at her competition.

How could she not have realized sooner? It was, quite literally, staring her in the face.

"I'm in love with Ruby."

Blake laughed with one last pleasant eye roll, "so what are you going to do about it?"

"I'm going to tell- no… I can't." Weiss sighed, hanging her head in defeat.

"But-but why? She's perfect for you. In that 'opposites attract' sort of way."

"Why else? My parents." Weiss smiled sadly. "If I chose to date anyone but the contest winner, then they would pressure me into dating Cardin. The whole reason for that bloody competition was to be in a relationship with the winner so that I couldn't be in one with Cardin. As much as I might lo-like her…"

"You need to choose your own future over any possible relationship," Blake finished.

Weiss could only nod, leaning into Blake's side and allowing her taller best friend to wrap her in a tight hug. It was comforting to know that she had someone there for her. That was willing to hug her in a motherly sort of way that her own mother never had. In a way that, try as she might, her own elder sister could not do. As much as she hated to admit it, she was the black sheep of their little family. And as rich as they were, there was no real love or comfort among them.

Not in the way she felt with her arms wrapped around her best friend in the world. Or when talking with that childish girl who had somehow silently and steadfastly wormed her way into her heart. To her parents, Blake Belladonna was just a servant. A faunus useful for Weiss to practice commands on. To get the heiress used to speaking over and holding herself above the race. Ruby Xiao Long would always be just some poor commoner girl who had no right to breath the same air as her, let alone be her friend and crush.

"I wish it was Ruby that won my stupid contest and not that Rose. I hate him, whoever he is," Weiss mumbled into Blake's sleeve.

"I'm sure he's a great guy," Blake murmured into her ear.

"If he was, then he wouldn't be so damn hard to find, let alone remember. Why couldn't he have some unique eye colour or hair colour. Or something! Like-"

"Ruby."

"Or Yang," Weiss replied with a small smile.

Blake chuckled, cradling Weiss a little closer, "those girls do have some unique eyes."

"Silver and lilac. You don't see much of that anywhere."

"Must be what makes those two so special."

Weiss finally returned Blake's hug, resting her chin on the ravenette's shoulder.

"Must be."


	31. Incorrect Assumptions

Ruby was shaking in her leather seat. There was just too much excitement in that moment to not act like a little kid hopped up on candy bars. Not that Yang wouldn't make fun of her for doing it anyways, regardless of the fact that she too had a nervous twitch in her leg. For once, Ruby could claim to be the more experienced of the two. They were sitting in one of Weiss's limousines, but a different one than had picked Ruby up for her competition. It was still so cool to Ruby that her bestest friend in the whole wide world had a fleet of limousines at her disposal.

Not that she was Weiss's best friend after all.

Apparently, she was 'different'. Whether that was a good thing or not still confounded her and Yang wasn't being very helpful when she asked. Something about the two of them needing to figure it out for themselves. And how Yang had promised herself not to get too involved in that part of her life.

Yang was always butting in when it came to her friends, or lack thereof. What made Weiss so different? Ruby could only shrug at that inner question. If she knew the answer to that, she wouldn't have needed to be asking Yang about it in the first place. All that she knew, was that she enjoyed spending her time with Weiss and hoped it didn't end soon. Regardless if she could find out anything more about Weiss's mystery competition winner, or if Weiss could find her music pin.

But now, under the excuse that they were coming over to help look for her missing pin, they were on their way and nearly arriving at Weiss's home. The grand Schnee estate.

It was just as big as she remembered it.

She smiled as Yang's jaw dropped at the sight. She let out a musing whistle of appreciation, sticking her cheek up against the car window to get a better view.

"Don't say it," Yang said, rolling her eyes.

"I wasn't going to say anything," Ruby sing-songed in reply.

"Good."

"Is that the face you make when Blake-"

"That's it!" Yang shouted, spinning around, and tackling her little sister off the seats.

Ruby burst out in laughter as the two wrestled across the limousine's pristine floor, feet kicking up dirt onto the couch cushions and denting the black plastic armrests.

They didn't notice the limousine stopping, nor their chauffeur holding open the door for them. Nor did they notice Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna standing right outside watching as the two tussled.

"Ack- Yang! Stop pulling my hair!"

"Then stop trying to bite me."

"That's cuz you bit first!"

"A lick isn't a bite!"

"It is too!"

"It's so not-eep! Oh, hey Blake. Weissicle."

The two stopped immediately, both frozen in shock, their arms and legs entangled at strange angles as they looked back to their two friends outside the vehicle.

"We'll pay for the damages?" Yang tried.

Weiss snorted a very unladylike snort. "You couldn't afford the cleaning, let alone damages. Welcome to the Schnee Estate. Please, make yourselves welcome."

Yang left the limousine first with an awkward backrub and light chuckle. Giving her girlfriend a quick peck on the cheek and hug, the two said their quick hellos.

Ruby dashed out of the car, wrapping herself tightly around Weiss in a happy hug. It took a moment, but she could feel Weiss's own arms move in around her body, completely the gesture. Something about the position they were in just felt so right to Ruby. She leaned her head on Weiss's shoulder, feeling her friend's rapidly beating heart pound against her chest. All she could think about was how nice it felt to be hugging her. It was like Yang's hugs, but better. Not that she would ever tell that to Yang. Or Weiss.

But, was Weiss getting warmer?

"Ahem," Blake cleared her throat.

Forcefully, Weiss pushed Ruby away, holding her at arm's length.

"Ah… hello Ruby. I-it's great to see you again. And talk to you, even though I, we, you… hi," Weiss's ramblings finally came to an end, her face turning crimson.

Ruby raised an eyebrow. "Are you alright? Are you feeling sick?"

Ruby attempted to feel her friend's forehead, only for said friend to step back, holding onto Ruby's hands with her own. Almost immediately, their fingers intertwined, bringing about a deeper blush on Weiss's pale face.

"I'm alright Ruby! Calm down. I'm feeling just fine."

"Okay, erm-good!" Ruby squeaked out.

The moment of silence between the two of them was interrupted once more by Blake. Weiss looked at her best friend and forced herself to drop Ruby's hands.

"Hey Weiss?" Blake asked lightly, "Do you remember that conversation we had? About your painting?"

"I do… and?"

"I don't think your plan of keeping silent is going to work."

Weiss's scowl descended into an unhappy sigh. "Rip it off like a band-aid?"

"Rip it off like a band-aid," Blake affirmed with a quick nod.

Weiss scowled under her breath, but shook her head, knowing that Blake was right. Ruby's silver eyes were piqued with a gentle curiousity. And she could only see the nervousness reflected in Weiss's bright blue ones.

"Ruby, why don't we go somewhere to talk alone. There is something… important I need to tell you."

As the two girl's walked away, Ruby could only hear a short snippet of Yang's conversation with Blake.

"Is it what I think it is?" Yang asked.

Blake shook her head sadly, "if only things were that simple."

Weiss's bedroom was nothing like Ruby was expecting. Truthfully, even she did not know what exactly she was expecting, but what she was seeing was definitely not that. Ruby had thought Weiss, being as rich as she was, would have as many things as possible in her room. There was the giant bed, which she did expect, but there weren't any posters, or paintings. No television set nor video game systems. The desk on one side of the room was there, but it was empty. No knick-knacks, or papers, or pens to clutter up the space. No computer or laptop. There wasn't anything in Weiss's room which screamed out "This is Weiss".

To Ruby, Weiss's room looked more like one of the guest bedrooms she had seen in Miss Fall's home. Not of a girl who had amazing interests and such a fun personality like Weiss.

"So, where's that winning sword I've heard so much about? I want to see it and see how it's different from mine. There were so many great ones I don't know how you picked the best one. Especially if they also added in space for dust like mine. I bet my trigger mechanism is better though. Unless they were a master… but mine's probably still better," Ruby rambled along as she paced Weiss's room, taking in the lack of sights.

Weiss giggled lightly. "I bet it was. This would all be so much easier if I had just chosen you as the winner, than that-" Weiss let her emotions calm down, knowing she was riling herself up into a fervor. "Boy."

"So you figured out who it was that made your sword?"

"No," Weiss shook her head. "I'm still looking for him, but he's making it quite difficult to find. My parents' too, by keeping the sword with them, but that's a whole other topic on its own. And enough talking about him. I wanted to talk about you."

"Me?"

"No! I -er, I mean us. Or me, you. I don't know!" Weiss leaned against her bed-frame, clutching at her temples.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked, reaching for the elder girl who was locked in her own mind, her thoughts vocalized but without any direction.

"Why did it have to be you? I couldn't keep it together for a single week once Blake told me. And I'm shaking?" Weiss let out a fake laugh, "of course I'm shaking! I didn't want to tell her. I don't want to! It can't happen. Not ever. Not if I want to get what I want in life. But, but…"

Weiss sighed and looked up at a nervous Ruby. Her frown softening into a gentle smile as she gazed into her good friend's mercury eyes.

"Whenever I'm around her, I can't let these feelings go. Ruby, I-" letting out a shay breath to calm her nerves, she started again. "Ruby, I never wanted to tell you this. Because whether or not you feel the same, it will just hurt the both of us. It will hurt me."

"I never want to hurt you!" Ruby interrupted, hopping towards her and grasping onto both her hands. "Whatever you need me to say, I'll say it. Promise."

"No!" Weiss shouted, ripping her hands away. "This isn't some fairy tale where we can get everything we want. Ruby, I- Ruby I like you."

"I like you too!"

Weiss scowled, "Ugh! You complete imbecile! Ruby. I like you. More than a friend. Romantically."

As Ruby opened her mouth to speak, Weiss interrupted her, placing a cold finger on her lips. "I don't want to hear it. Whatever you may say, it will only make things worse. There is no response you can give that won't shatter my heart."

"But Weiss-"

"-No, you don't get to speak. Y-you can't. Want to know the reason I hosted that weapons competition? It was to free myself from my parents. From their perfect match they had set up for me. I don't want to be forced to date him, let alone marry him. And I have one chance to get out of it. _One_. If I want to be able to lead my parents' companies freely, without being subservient to whatever man my parents like as their real successor, I have to date the winner of that competition.

"I have to. I don't have a choice in that matter. By god! I hate that Rose! Don't you see Ruby?" There were tears streaming down her face.

"Wei-"

"Can't you see? It doesn't matter what my heart feels. I can choose a few days of happiness, before it gets stripped away from me by my parents, along with any chance of living my life independently. Or, I can force myself to give up on love, settle down with a man I haven't yet met, but already truly despise, and have the faintest of chances to be free to live my life."

"Weiss, I-"

"It doesn't matter what you say, Ruby. This is the way it has to be. It doesn't matter."

Weiss was sobbing hard, eyes red and tear lines running down her perfect cheeks.

"Ruby, I can't do this any more. I can't be friends with you anymore. Not when my heart already feels like it's breaking in two. But, I have to say this. At least once. Once before I lose you forever."

"Weiss-"

"Hush," Weiss scolded, not letting Ruby interrupt her stream of thoughts before she could finally say what she had been wanting to say for longer than she even knew.

"Weiss, please!" Ruby shouted, her voice cracking with desperation.

"Ruby, just stop. Please." Weiss grabbed the younger girl's shoulders, quieting her from her endless and senseless ramblings. Ruby's cheeks were bright red and stained with tears of her own and her eyes flicked away from Weiss's unable to look her in the eye.

"Y-yes, Weiss?" She said timidly, lip trembling in a way which made Weiss want to kiss her then and there. She wanted to desperately but knew that if she had any hope of saying what she wanted to, it would have to be said first. Kissing her, would never happen. It broke her heart to think about.

"Ruby, a-at first I disliked you. I disliked you quite a lot in fact. Hated you even. You spilled paint on my clothes and they were completely stained. They're still stained I might add."

"Weiss, you're rambling as bad as me," Ruby giggled sadly, placing her own hands on Weiss's shoulders and sniffling away unshed tears.

"Right, yes. But then I got to know you. You were this hyperactive girl who just wanted to make her sister happy. You were so… honest. Honest in everything you did. From the work you like to do with your hands, to your words, to how you wear every emotion you have on your sleeve. I was disconcerted at first. I had never met somebody so completely truthful before. I thought it was a front. A lie just to get me to lower my guard. But when I found out it wasn't, I… I fell. I fell hard. For you. A-and I know that I'm supposed to be waiting to find my mystery builder. That idiot of a Rose. I know that I don't have long left to find him before I have to go on a date with Cardin and have him declared the winner of that tournament, but I just don't want to.

"I want you, Ruby Xiao Long. Even though it's impossible. I want you, Ruby Xiao Long."

Weiss stepped back and shut her eyes, taking in a large breath, exhaling it all slowly. When her eyes opened, they were filled by pools of liquid mercury.


	32. Moments of Perfect Clarity

"I want you, Ruby Xiao Long. Even though it's impossible. I want you, Ruby Xiao Long."

"Rose."

"What?"

"Rose," Ruby supplied helpfully with a giggle. "That's my name. Ruby Rose."

"I… I don't understand."

"Yang's last name is our father's. Taiyang Xiao Long. Mine is my mother's. Summer Rose. So ya, that's me, Ruby Rose. I would have thought Yang or Blake would have told you that. It's not a secret or anything-"

Her words were cut off by Weiss's lips on hers. Shocked at first, it only took a moment for her to be lost in the feeling of those perfect lips fitting like puzzle pieces against her own. How they meshed together and lit bonfires in her chest, heat rising up from her stomach and creeped its way towards her neck where a blush was quickly forming. Ruby's arms wrapped tightly around Weiss, while Weiss's hands were planted firmly on her hips.

All too soon, they separated, gasping for air. Liquid silver met sapphire in a gaze which held more feeling than the two could express in words.

"You're the one." Weiss finally said. "The weapon smith I've been looking for. The one who won my contest. And the date. Ruby Rose, you are the girl I've been searching for this entire time. And yet, you were in front of my eyes this entire time."

Ruby giggled, sliding out from the hug to hold Weiss's hips in turn. "Surprise, princess."

The two leaned forwards, resting their foreheads against one another, noses just barely touching. Their bodies moved closer, desperate for as much contact as possible. As if those few seconds apart were too much for either to bare.

"Dolt."

Ruby giggled, "I can't believe you though my last name was Xiao Long."

"How would I have known otherwise?!" Weiss gaped, attempting to scowl but unable to remove the smile from her face.

Ruby smirked, counting on her fingers. "Well, we call our place the Rose-Xiao Long house, we have a garden out front which Yang calls the Ruby Rose garden, which is weird because we've only ever planted vegetables, strawberries and herbs. Is mint an herb? Oh! And when you told me you were going to be watching the smithing competition, you said you were going to do it by a rose bush and I told you my last name then."

Weiss glared at the girl as she wove her three raised fingers in front of her face. Grasping onto them with both hands, Weiss lowered a finger.

"Hey!"

"Ruby Rose," hearing Weiss say her name sent a shiver down her spine. "I've never heard either you nor Yang call your house that. Blake calls it the Xiao Long house."

Another lowered finger, "I didn't even notice that you had a garden at your house. I think we spent most of the time in your shed."

With a soft smile, she lowered down Ruby's third and final finger. "I'm pretty sure I cut you off before you told me that. Though I am extremely sorry I did that. It would have saved both of us a great deal of trouble. And… you remembered where I was watching the contest?"

"I remember everything you told me," Ruby confirmed with a nod, glad that Weiss still held her outstretched hand in both of hers.

Weiss blushed brightly, leaning in for a very quick peck on the lips.

"Anyways," Weiss brushed a stray hair behind her ear. "Now that I got all my thoughts on the subject out in the open, would you… would you like to go on a-a date with me? Romantically, that is. As both someone I seem to like… and the competition winner?"

"Yes!" Ruby shouted with delight, "of course I'd want to. Even without being the contest winner." Ruby stepped back, blinking. "Wait, I'm the contest winner?!"

Weiss rolled her eyes as Ruby seemed to visibly shake with excitement. It didn't take her too long to start bouncing and skipping around the room, eyes alight with glee. She had won! Her weapon, her sword, her precious Myrtenaster! It was the best of the best! Or, at least best of the few who had attended, which was good enough for her at that moment.

"This is so awesome. It-it's like a dream come true! My sword won! And a date with Weiss too," she added in as an afterthought.

"Thanks, I feel so special," Weiss huffed out with a smile. It was easy to tell she was thinking about Ruby's lifelong dream of being a weapon smith. She would let Ruby have her excitement. For now at least.

After a few more minutes of Ruby calming down from her high, which was filled with plenty of squealing, the occasional happy tear and a hug or three, the two girls got to talking about more mundane topics. Sitting together on Weiss's bed, fingers lightly entwined, they discussed trivialities of the past week. Regardless of how they had likely texted each other about those very same topics before.

Ruby spoke about getting into Beacon University, as well as the ribbon Yang had made for her.

"I'm actually growing out my hair. It's a little too short, but I want to use the ribbon to tie back my hair when I'm working, like Yang does when she's working out or running."

"I think it'll look good on you. Longer hair, that is." Weiss commented, running a finger through Ruby's short, chin-length locks, leaving a hearty blush on the young girl. "Maybe not as long as mine or Yang's, but…"

"Blake's length?"

"Exactly what I was thinking."

There was just a moment's pause before the two started giggling. It was nice to know that even with such heavy-handed topics, they were still on relatively the same pace. To Ruby, that was the most comforting thing. She loved that she could still act the same with her friend, though now it involved a little less personal space than before. She chose to see that as an all-encompassing positive.

"I told you about getting into Beacon, right?"

Weiss nodded, bumping her elbow into Ruby's. "I'm so proud of you for that."

"Thanks. I'm just so relieved. I… I don't want to sound ungrateful or snooty or anything, but I knew I was going to get in. I was just so scared that me getting in would mean Yang wouldn't. Or at least it would be that much harder for Yang to do what she wants to. I'm so close to helping the both of us. If I can just get that full scholarship, we'll both be set." Ruby tapped her knee twice with a clenched fist.

"You know, maybe I can help out? I like to think that I am fairly wealthy. At least wealthy enough to help out my friends a little bi-"

"No. We're good friends Weiss. Best friends even-"

"-Blake's my best friend."

"Best friends who kiss sometimes then."

"… okay."

"I don't want to take advantage of my friendships. I don't want you to ever think that I'm using you for your money-"

"But I won't think that!" Weiss tried to assure. Ruby shook her head, seeing that Weiss didn't understand.

"And what if we don't end up working out? I don't want to feel indebted to you. I wouldn't like it even if we stayed together forever. You help me by being you. Not by being a bank."

Ruby stared hard at her friend. Her girlfriend, maybe, if Ruby was being really honest with herself and wanted to bring in titles. Finally, Weiss sighed. "Alright Ruby. But know that I will always help you. Always."

"Thanks Weissy. Oh! Speaking of helping me, maybe I can use your help after all!"

Ruby then broke out into an excited explanation of the conditions to her acceptance and university scholarship. Even if Weiss didn't believe her, Ruby was confident that she read that acceptance letter a million times over. For that reason, she was confident that she knew exactly what that thing asked for.

"I got to show them my sword! Well, your sword. But I got to show them how it works. I just got to. Do you think they want a full demonstration? Like, me taking it apart and rebuilding it again?" Ruby gasped, "do you think I will need to build a brand new version of it right in front of them?"

Weiss however, was fairly confident that Ruby had misread or misremembered the terms of her acceptance.

"Are you positive that the admissions staff wished to see your entire weapon design? It seems like a lot of work to go through especially if they have dozens of other applicants to go through on that day."

"Maybe… it was just the music system? Can I borrow your sword to show them the music system?"

"Of course, but music system? Ruby.. did you put a stereo into my rapier…"

"What? No! Hmm… that could be a good idea for version two, but no. Maybe? No." Ruby shook the thought from her head. "When you spin the revolver! I made sure that it was perfectly designed. When you spin it, it makes that click-clack sound."

Weiss's eyes widened in understanding, "I remember that. It sounded like a train running over it's tracks. It…" Weiss looked to her knees with a light blush, "it's why I chose it over everything else."

Now it was Ruby's turn to blush. "It was what I was looking for when I ran into you when we first met."

Weiss giggled suddenly, "it's like we were destined to meet and like each other."

"I like to think we like each other all on our own. Destiny just gave us a little push."

"Maybe. But right now, I'm happy either way."


	33. A Final Evil

The next few days could only be considered perfect to Ruby. Not much seemed to change externally; she still spent her days in class and afternoons working for Cinder Fall. But there was no longer than underlying stress of it all. She had everything she wanted and more. Feeling the buzzing of her scroll on the couch, she reached over to look at another text from her friend.

From her girlfriend.

She was happy to be alone in her house for once so that Yang didn't hear her squeal of delight. It had been obvious to her sister and Blake that the two of them had started something. Of course, the blushes nor their entwined hands helped pretend otherwise. Luckily, it began with big hugs and shouts of "congratulations" from the two before the teasing started. Mostly from Yang, but Blake was slowly starting to learn the ways of Yang Xiao Long.

Texting back a quick reply to Weiss, ending it with a heart, she placed her scroll back down with a smile and went back to her television. Playing was the news, something Ruby rarely if ever watched. But the current broadcast was something quite important to her. And Weiss had told her to watch it, so there was no way she was going to miss it, loathe as she was to enjoy news reporters talking about things.

Television was for cartoons and comedies. Maybe the occasional romance movie when she was alone, and Yang wouldn't be home to catch her watching or crying to them. It was still the one big secret she kept from Yang. The teasing would no doubt be torturous. She smiled, thinking about how she would watch romances with Weiss, the two curled up next to each other. Possibly hand in hand, possibly her arm around her.

She wasn't quite sure when she became such romantic. It was totally Weiss's fault.

"-Schnee's search is finally over," came the announcer on the television. Immediately, her attention turned to the screen, eyes wide as a picture of Weiss decked out in her finest dress, a small tiara on her head, flickered across the TV set.

"More than a month ago, Weiss Schnee, heiress to the multi-billion lien valued Schnee business empire held a contest to build a weapon for her own personal use. Of the near hundred and fifteen in attendance to the event were some of the best in the weapon smithing business, including such prominent figures as Cardin Winchester, heir to the Winchester Weapons Corporation, as well as Sky Lark of the Lark Aircraft Corporation. Among those were also multiple fresh-faced commoners who managed to get their hands on some of the illusive tickets."

Ruby cocked her head. She hadn't realized that there were so many people at the competition. There were quite a few competitors, but she thought there must have been no more than a few dozen, not over a hundred.

"Wait, my tickets were illusive?" Her heart flickered as a blush engulfed her cheeks. She hadn't realized how lucky she was to attend. Maybe there was something like destiny bringing them together.

"After a long wait, the Schnee family has finally broken their silence. In just a few days time, the winner of said competition will be revealed to the world, winning not just glory after facing off against some of the best in the business, but also the ability to take the most eligible bachelorette in the country on a romantic date, all expenses paid by the Schnee family of course. And who might this winner be? Well, it seems like there was some trouble locating the mystery winner, with Weiss Schnee herself saying that she was happy with the winner, though she wished she allowed contestants to write their names on the weapons."

The image flashed to Weiss in front of plenty of cameras and microphones. "I had a winning weapon, but the person it was linked to had been lost. It took a little bit of time to match the weapon to the winner, but I can most assuredly say that I am so happy with the result. I can't wait for our date," Weiss finished with a wink to the camera as well as a glorious smile which ignited Ruby's insides.

It was beyond incredible to know that Weiss not only liked her, but liked her enough to tell th entire world. Well, maybe not tell the entire world her name, but it was enough to know that the wink was for her and only for her.

"So, who is Weiss's mystery man or lady?" The reporter said with her own flashing smile, "While we the public will find out in just a few days, it looks like miss Weiss Schnee is more than delighted by the results."

As the broadcast continued, running through some of the general history of the Schnee family, as well as Weiss's own personal pursuits, there was a knock at the front door.

"Yang, one second!" Ruby shouted, jumping up and over the couch, lowering the television's volume as she flew towards the front door where she was sure her sister was waiting for her.

She was so excited to see Yang, and not just to tell her about the news she had just watched. No, yang was bringing Blake over again because the two were on another date. As much as she hated to admit it, she liked hearing about their dates. Just because it was a great source of ideas for when she would eventually muster up the courage to officially ask Weiss on one. Not because she thought Blake and Yang together were an adorably cute and romantic pair. No way, indeed.

"Welcome back, Ya-" her cheers caught in her throat as she saw the wickedly smiling faces looking down at her.

The first and most recognizable to her was her landlady, Miss Fall. She was wearing her usual flaming red dress, the hints of orange around the hem looked to be swirling and swarming as if it was made of real fire, about to burn whatever it touched. The smile on Cinder Fall's face looked real, but her eyes were fierce and pointed like that of a cobra, about to strike at an unsuspecting target.

The next two were no new to her, but strange to see in such an unremarkable setting. It was obvious who they were, even without the news report she had just been watching. From Jacque's scowling eyes to Willow's high cheek bones, the two were most definitely Weiss's parents. They both looked angry and gleeful and so much more terrifying than Weiss did when she scowled like that.

"Y-yes?" Ruby finally let out, holding onto the doorframe to keep from falling over as she was stared down by those three powerful individuals.

Jacques Schnee held up a single piece of paper with a smug smile underneath his moustache. It was his wife that ended up talking. "Ruby Rose? This right here is a seize and desist letter. And this right here," she held up a second piece of paper, "is a court summons letter. You look like a fairly intelligent girl, for a peasant commoner, do you know what that means?"

"I-I do, what's this about?" Ruby didn't quite know what the seize and desist letter was, but she was pretty sure that they weren't going to stop and explain it to her if she asked.

"Well, it looks like the weapon you made for my dear daughter Weiss's little competition was a forgery. It was taken from a handful of designs created by Cardin Winchester of the Winchester Weapons Corporation. I'm sure you've heard of it? Not only did you steal a patented design, created by Mister Winchester, you also tried to pawn it off as an original. And for that, we, as noble friends to the Winchesters are going to ask you to stop weapon smithing, hand over all your stolen designs, as well as go to court and later prison for all the trouble you caused us. How does that sound?"

Ruby took a half step back, shock plastered all over her face. "I… I don't- What are you talking about?"

"You are going to prison, little lady," Jacques Schnee said, barely holing back his contentment. "And you will never see my daughter again. Let alone go on a date with her. She will marry our successor, just as she should have from the beginning."

"Oh, and one more thing, my dear little Ruby Rose," Cinder always had to have the last word. With her fierce grin, she held onto Ruby's chin, making sure that she was staring into her eyes. Cinder was ready to watch Ruby crumble. She wanted Ruby to see her victory.

"I've checked the official tenant agreement and I've finally found the loophole I needed to. Thanks to a little fluke with Patch tenant law and your little agreement, we finally found what I needed underneath all the rubbish of terms your terrible, _dead_ parents created. I don't need to allow convicted felons to live in my peaceful and humble abode, now do I. I hope you've had a nice final day in your home, because you will never be allowed in it again."


	34. Last Chances

Yang had had an incredible night. She had finally taken Blake to a sushi restaurant; a small, cheap one, but she had been able to afford it herself using her extra tips for the past week. And suffice it to say, she could actually get used to eating raw fish and seaweed. As long as Blake was there to help her hold her chopsticks and teach her the endless delight that was soy sauce and wasabi. Also, seeing Blake chew down on fish, her ears flickering with delight at the comforting food and those low rumbling moans she made whenever she ate a particularly succulent morsel, well, there was nothing better.

But after some time at the restaurant, which she paid for, the two went walking through the town of Patch which she called home, showing Blake the sights. They even stopped for a quick bite of ice cream, which Blake was kind enough to pay for. All the while, they walked hand in hand, or with her arm over her girlfriend's shoulders.

Yang had planned for the perfect end to their night. They would walk back to her house, kick Ruby back to her room, which she was pretty confident Ruby would go to willingly if she asked, and then spend the rest of the night cuddled together under an unreasonable amount of blankets, watching a romance movie. One they would have to put on low enough so Ruby couldn't hear it, because there was no way in hell that Yang would let her sister find out about and then proceed to tease her about her love of romance movies.

That entire late-night idea quickly ended at the first sight of her street. In front of her house were three police cars, red lights flashing in the darkness.

"Wonder what that's all about," Blake said as the two quickened their pace.

"Maybe Ruby set fire to something." Yang quipped, only slightly worried about what was going on.

"Think there was a break in?"

"Nah, Ruby knows to text or call me if anyone enters the house. We have a codeword and everything. If anything, Ruby… RUBY!" Yang shouted as she saw Ruby being dragged from the house by two police officers.

"Yang!" Ruby's voice was tearing up, cracking from the volume and force of her words. "I didn't do anything wrong! You have to believe me. Yang!"

Yang was in a rage, stomping over towards her house, only to be held back by two police officers.

"Get your dirty hands off me," Yang threatened, clenching her fists. "That's my sister you've got there!"

"Yang save me!" Ruby screamed, thrashing about in the officers' hold. "Please, I didn't do anything wrong. I'm being framed! It was, it was Cinder Fall! And the Schnees. They set me up!"

"Let her go!" Yang cried out, trying to break through the hold of the policemen.

"I'm sorry ma'am," came a calm, yet forceful reply. "She's been placed under arrest for stealing confidential information. Along with stealing valuables from her employer"

"Ruby? She'd never do anything like that. Officers, you've got to believe her. Believe me! Whatever she's been accused of has got to be wrong. She's too good and kind-hearted to do anything like that."

"I'm sorry ma'am. We need to take her in. We have proof enough, and the word from her employer and those she stole from."

"Her employer? Cinder," Yang growled.

"Yang! Please believe me! I didn't do anything wrong!" Ruby was crying painful tears, giving up her wild thrashing, in turn for a softer rolling of her shoulders. All her strength having left her at the sight of Yang being held back.

"I believe you!" Yang shouted, jumping over the officers' shoulders so Ruby could see her. "Trust me! I'll make sure you're safe! I love you."

"Pleas Yang, I-I didn't do anything wro-" Ruby's words were cut off as the door to the back of the police car shut.

Finally, the officers blocking Yang parted, letting her rush to the side of the police car, where Ruby was, placing her hand on the window. Ruby, handcuffed to the seat in front of her, did her best to reach for the same window. There were fierce tears in her eyes, as she shouted through the glass.

"It's Cinder and Weiss's parents! It's Cinder and Weiss's parents! Yang!"

The police car sped off, turning up the street until it was out of view.

"Miss Xiao Long?"

"Yes?"

"Here's the cease and desist letter as well as court summons presented to your sister prior to her arrest. The date for the summons is written down. We have read your sister her rights, but to keep you informed, as the guardian of the household, she has the right to an attorney, but if you cannot afford one, one shall be granted to her, by the city of Patch."

"Thank you," Yang said in a small voice. Her eyes were wide and flickering red with rage, but she felt so small, so hollow at that moment. She was still facing the street where Ruby in the back of a police car had been taken away.

She was very much still in shock.

Everything had been going so well. So well for her and more importantly, so well for Ruby. And then this. She should have known better than to believe their luck was going to change.

"Yang?" Yang flinched as Blake placed a soothing hand on her shoulder.

"Yang?" Blake tried again, speaking much slower this time to not scare her girlfriend.

"I-I, I can't lose her. I don't think I can survive losing her. Not after mom and dad. But R-Ruby too?" Yang's voice cracked. "I thought out luck was turning Blake. I thought things were supposed to get better. Why aren't things getting any better?"

They both knew that there was no correct answer. Blake wished that she could take on some of the pain that Yang was feeling. Even a drop in what appeared to be an overflowing bucket of bad or worse luck placed upon the shoulders of the Xiao Long-Rose sisters.

"What do we do?" Yang asked after a moment of silence.

Blake wrapped her arms around the tall blonde, holding her steadfast in a tight and lingering hug. Placing her chin on Yang's shoulder, she rubbed one hand soothingly up and down her spine. Anything to remove at least of the tension from the girl. She waited until Yang let out a shuddering sigh before speaking.

"First, we call Weiss. I'm sure Weiss will know what to do. She's your friend, my best friend and Ruby's girlfriend. If there's anyone who can put together an idea to beat her parents, it'll be her."

"Ya, Weiss… Let's call her." Yang looked to be going through the motions, rather than acting with any force of will.

That only meant it was up to Blake. Flicking open her scroll, she speed-dialed Weiss on speakerphone. Her best friend picked up after a single ring.

"Blake!" Weiss shouted, "what're you doing calling? I expected a call after your date not during it. Okay, give me all the details. And I do mean all of them."

"Weiss," Blake's response immediately sobered Weiss's excitement.

"What happened? Did something happen to you? To Yang?"

"It's Ruby."

Blake heard Weiss's suck in a gasp.

"What did my parents do?"

"She's going to jail forever," Yang replied despondently.

"Ruby will be fine," Blake urged, holding onto her girlfriend's arm tightly.

"My parents are sending Ruby to prison?! On what charges!" There was the fierce and commanding Weiss Blake had been waiting for. If there was one thing that Blake knew after years of friendship, was that getting Weiss angry over an important cause was the best way to win in the end.

It had worked to get her to even propose to her parents to hold that weapon smithing competition in the first place. And Blake sure as fire knew that it was going to work to save Ruby now. She quickly explained to Weiss what they had seen, as well as read through some of the court summons and other documentation that the police officers had provided them. With every knew bit of information, Weiss would huff or sigh. It was obvious to both Blake and Yang that Weiss was processing something in her mind not privy to them.

Once they had finished going over everything, they waited for Weiss's response with silent anticipation.

"Blake? Yang?" Weiss said.

"Ya?"

"Uh-huh?"

"My parents aren't going to win in the end. Not this time, not anymore."

Yang, finally having regained some of the hope in her eyes, grasped onto Blake's scroll with both hands. "You have an idea? A way to beat them?"

"I do. But it all comes down to how well Ruby knows her stuff. My parents are going to use every dirty trick they have, right down to the statistics of crime coming from broken families. All that we can do now is keep our wits about us and stay calm. My parents, and most assuredly Cinder Fall will be looking for anything else to blame Ruby with. So let's all be patient and sleep as best we can for the time being. And Yang? I'm going to need headmaster Ozpin's number. I have a call to make."


	35. Happiness to Come

The pounding of the gavel felt like the first thing that Yang heard all day. "All rise for the honourable, Judge Arthur Watts."

The sounds of dozens of people rising off of wooden benches filled the room around Yang. The ruffling of high-class and expensive fabrics, as each person there, including herself, were wearing their best clothes for the trial. There were a lot more people present for this court session than she had ever thought would attend. Not only were there plenty of people she did not know, there were members of the press too. Each taking notes of the goings on, even when cameras and video equipment weren't allowed.

"Now to read the list of all the accused is standing trial for." There was a shuffle of paper. It sounded thick. The judge cleared his throat before speaking. "The accused, a one miss Ruby Xia Long-Rose has been accused of the following. Three counts of theft, one count of burglary, and six counts of stealing in the first order, all pertaining to the theft of classified weaponry documentation, smithing methods and designs of one, Myrtenaster class hybrid rapier-revolver blade from Cardin Winchester and the Winchester Weapons Corporation."

To Yang, that sounded like more than a lot of accusations to place on a sixteen-year-old girl. But, as the judge flipped to a second page, she could feel herself pale.

"The accused, a one miss Ruby Xiao Long-Rose has also been accused of sixteen counts of burglary, four counts of breaking and entering, and four counts of theft to the first degree, all pertaining to the multiple accused thefts of precious items from the home of her long term employer and landlord, Miss Cinder Fall."

Ruby was about to speak, getting out a single syllable before her court-appointed lawyer silenced her with a hand over the mouth.

"How does the defendant plead?"

"She pleads innocent to all crimes," the lawyer said in a shaky voice.

Yang could feel herself paling further. He did not sound confident. More so, he sounded green. She looked around the room. Reporters in the back, scribbling away on their notebooks. A few rows filled with others she couldn't place, and some less than friendly faces. There was some in expensive clothing, no doubt some friends of the Schnee family. Not of Weiss though, seeing as she was sitting on one side of her, with Blake on the other.

Close to the front, sitting behind the rows of lawyers for the plaintiff, the Schnees, was Jacques and Willow. Both looked smug and almost bored by the whole affair. They were relaxed in their seats, taking in the events with unenthused expressions. Jacques looked more hungry than attentive. Behind them was Cinder Fall and her cronies. Cinder was admiring everything around her with a fanatically wicked grin. If she could get away with it, Yang was sure she would be cackling madly. And of course, there was Emerald and Mercury. Emerald was looking like a happy puppy, sitting next to her boss, while Mercury looked as bored as ever.

Actually, he was barely even paying attention to what was going on; more fascinated to admire whatever little toy he was twisting and turning in his grasp.

"For these crimes read, Miss Rose can face up to seventeen years in prison, with the ability of parole after the first seven."

Yang saw red. Lurching out of her seat, she lifted up a single finger to point at the judge just so he knew where he could shove his words. "You son of a-"

She yelped as she was pulled back down into her seat, two hands over her mouth, two others digging hard into her shoulder blades.

"Shut up, you moron!" Weiss whispered angrily. It was more of a stage-whisper really. "Do you want to be thrown out of here?!"

Yang shook her head, glaring at the white-haired girl, "of course not. I just-"

"Then shut up! There's no way that my parents haven't bought off the judge. Who knows about the jury. Do you want to give him a reason to throw you out of here? Let alone charge you with contempt of court?!"

Yang gritted her teeth, "no."

"Good."

With that matter unhappily resolved, their attention was back on the trial itself. The first person to be called up was Willow Schnee herself. In much too many words, she recounted what she could recall of the day of the weapon smithing competition, all with the careful and considerate prompting of her most likely expensive team of lawyers. She spoke about remembering seeing a girl much too young to attend being present, as well as the downtrodden clothing she wore. Obviously, as mentioned by the lawyers, this girl was only there to win and take as much as she could get her grimy little hands on from the illustrious and well-to-do Schnee family

Even though Ruby's lawyer tried his best to keep the questions proper and unbiased, the judge overruled him each and every time. Ruby looked to be visibly shaking in her seat as one after another, more witnesses took the stands, each spouting out lies and half-truths about her, her family, her livelihood and her greatest passion.

When Cinder took the stands, declaring to all how she had done her best to care for the young girl while her elder sister was working tirelessly, only to have her steal everything that wasn't bolted down, well, Ruby looked about ready to lose it. Yang understood that pain. She felt the exact same. If they weren't in a courthouse at that moment, surrounded by cops, she would have punched that woman as hard as she could.

As someone training to become a huntsman, Yang was fairly confident that she had a pretty deadly right hook. Yang spent some time, while the biased questioning was happening, to think about where she would hit her landlady to keep her down and away from their meager family for good. It did little to help the situation that Ruby was in, but it did make her feel better.

At least a little bit.

"No more questions, your honour," said Ruby's lawyer, looking quite tired after the whole affair as he sat down.

Cinder was still sitting there, looking quite pleased with the outcome of the questioning. That left a single major witness left in the case. One last attempt for Ruby to eek out a little victory.

"Can Cardin Winchester come down to the stands." The judge called out, waving his gavel haphazardly. He looked relatively bored with the whole situation.

Yang snorted derisively. Of course he was bored. He knew what the outcome was going to be. He was paid to ensure it. Cinder still looked to be in a fairly good mood, as was Emerald, who had somehow positioned herself even closer to her boss without gaining a reaction from the elder temptress. And Mercury was still huddled over, paying more attention to whatever toy he had in his hands than the greater world around him. Yang could see herself being in the same position if her and her sister's entire lives didn't hang in the balance.

The man of the hour himself all but swaggered down to the stands, a slight smirk on his lips as well as a delightfully horrid wink in Weiss's direction. Yang rolled her eyes, snorting at Weiss's scoff. Finally settling down into his seat, it was time for the questioning to begin once more.

"Please state your name and occupation to the court," said his lawyer.

"Cardin Winchester. I'm the one and only heir to the Winchester Weapon's Corporaton. Part time playboy, part time weapons inventor, all around stud. You know the deal," another wink in Weiss's direction.

At the lawyer's instruction, a silver sword was brought into the room, laid flat on a large table. To Yang, who knew extremely little about weapon smithing, even while living with a smith of Ruby's calibre, she could still tell it was a magnificent blade. From where she sat, there looked to be very little scuff marks from improper sanding or trimming. The thin blade shone in the electric light of the courtroom and the hilt seemed to gleam with each and every etching in it. The revolver design along with the trigger, just above where someone would grab the sword was large enough to be noticeable, yet small enough to give the entire device an odd, wonky appearance.

All in all, it reminded Yang was the dozens of weapons all crammed into boxes and buckets around Ruby's shed, if not of better quality material. Which made sense, it was most definitely Ruby's weapon after all.

"Can you tell the court the name of this blade?"

"It's Myternaster, obviously. Says it on the blade itself." Cardin folded his arms over his chest, raising an eyebrow.

"Care to share some details about your weapon? How did you come up with such a remarkable name?"

"-Conjecture." Ruby's lawyer interrupted, only to be shrugged off by the judge with a flick of his wrist.

"Most certainly," Cardin said, sitting up a bit straighter in his seat at the front of the room. "Well, Myrtenaster obviously comes from the root word 'Myrtle', which is a genus of flower, while 'aster' means star. This represents both Weiss's flowering beauty and her stardom in all she does. Truly romantic, isn't it?"

Ruby scoffed loudly, mumbling something about boring meanings, which earned her glares from the majority of those around the room.

"As for the weapon itself, it's a.. a rapier-revolver hybrid. It can shoot dust from the gun bit, as well as stab people from the sword bit. Pure silver because the person who stole my design obviously didn't have enough skill to add any other metals to the alloy. The handle is white leather, with silver thread. No originality. Every little bit is made according to _my_ specifications. Which I'm sure my lawyer will be happy to show everyone."

The lawyer did, taking out a large blueprint of the weapons, with specifications and building instructions right down to the colours and patterns used in the hilt. Even Ruby had to whistle out an acceptance to the amount of detail in it.

"Is that all you know about this weapon? You did design it from the ground up."

"Objection! That's conjecture!"

"Overruled."

Cardin then proceeded to talk more about Ruby's sword. From the weight to its precision balance, down to the specific etchings in each part of the quillon. There was just so much information being shared that it boggled Yang's mind. Looking around the room, it looked to be boring most of the others there as well. Except for Mercury, who hadn't been paying attention the entire time anyways.

"…and lastly, if you need more proof it's my design and this girl doesn't understand a single thing she's working on, then all you would need to do is check inside the trigger mechanism. To keep it from clicking too loudly, there needs to be a rough surface, yes, counter-intuitive, I know. But, since there was going to be an etching there anyways, and I obviously would want to take credit for my own work, I etched in a cardinal. So whenever Weiss uses it, she'll always have me alongside her."

Alogn with the few sighs of "aaw!" around the room and jury table, there was the loud smack of a chair falling over. Two hands slammed on a table as Ruby pointed a nasty finger at Cardin.

"You're lying! It makes no sense to put an etching there, it should be a flat, smooth surface! You're lying Cardin-" A hand flew over her mouth to keep her from shouting out more, but from the smirk on Cardin's lips and the glimmer in his eye, the damage had already been done.

"If we need conclusive proof, then Mr. Winchester, why don't you take apart the weapon fully and show everyone."

"It would be my pleasure."

Ruby gasped out a painful, "no!"

But it was too late to stop it. Within minutes, the blade was deconstructed. Dozens upon dozens of pieces, some large, like the blade itself, some tiny, like the many screws and coils used to configure the trigger mechanism. All too soon, it was done, leaving Ruby in tears and Cardin with a smile.

It left the Schnee parents with smiles of their own.

And Cinder. Her smirk was enough to hold all the evil within her body. It sparked of victory. The day would end with her above all others. It grew wider still, when a small etching of a cardinal was shown to the judge and the jury, to gasps and cries of astonishment.

"There you have it, your honour. All the proof you need right there. I think I can say now, I rest my case."

"I would think not, my good sir," came a charming voice from the back of the courtroom. A voice which Yang almost didn't recognize in their current context.

Walking slowly, cane in hand down the room towards the judge's bench was Headmaster Ozpin himself, wearing a small, pleasant smile on his face.

"It seems there is still much left to be discussed."


	36. The Second Slipper

"Why is there an interruption?!" shouted a furious Jacques Schnee, standing up from his seat. "Who are you and what gives you the right to be here for these proceedings?"

Ozpin looked very much unconcerned with the Schnee patriarch's red-faced anger, as he walked to the front of the courtroom.

"My name is Ozpin. I happen to be the headmaster to Beacon University. I thought I would come see what all this trouble is about, seeing as it concerns a future student of mine. Hearing that the very weapon she told me about, which affirmed her place in my university and the scholarship she is hoping to receive was a stolen piece of work? Why, I had to come down and ensure that I wouldn't be letting a criminal into my prestigious institution. I can see here that she looks to be in a great deal of trouble with so much evidence pointed against her. It's almost as if everything here was a set-up of some sort, hmm?"

Yang chocked back a snort.

"No matter," Ozpin waved off that line of thought. "If it comes to pass that Miss Rose here has indeed stolen Mr. Winchester's design, then she will lose her place at my school, along with whatever financial support she may have otherwise gotten from it."

"We should let him stay!" Cinder decided to interrupt, raising a clawed hand into the air. "Let the esteemed headmaster see that this girl is obviously a no good thief."

Her winning grin grew more devious.

"I say we allow his intrusion," Willow Schnee said calmly, nodding politely to her associate, who nodded back.

Jacques Schnee grumbled loudly, but agreed with his wife and Cinder Fall, sitting down roughly.

"May I speak to the jury and those attending? You may count me as a witness if you wish to. Or an expert witness if you will. I do run a school which has a focus on the very subject being mentioned here."

"I'll allow it."

As Ozpin approached the bench at the front of the room, he gave Yang a quick smile, easily finding her amongst the crowd in attendance. It did help that she was standing up, a wrist held by both girls beside her in case she was going to lunge at the judge. Or the lawyer. Or Cinder. Or Jacque or Willow Schnee.

There were quite a lot of people that Yang was all but ready to attack at that moment before Beacon's headmaster had arrived. Now, she was just stunned by the intrusion on his part. She had known that Weiss was planning on calling him; for what, Weiss had not seen fit to tell her. Feeling a pull on her wrist, she let Weiss help her back into her seat as Ozpin started to speak.

"For those of you unaware, weapon-smithing is a subset of the huntsman program at Beacon University. The huntsman program itself is divided into two streams. Hunting, which regards all that is commonly known about hunstmen. From exploration, to combat, to search and rescue in disaster situations. The other steam, the one being discussed here today is the weapon-smithing side. The designing, researching and constructing of items and tools used and utilized by those in the huntsman profession."

"Ob-"

"How can the judge, nor the jury make a fair judgement without understanding what they are judging on? But don't worry. I am a teacher at heart and do know how to move a broad topic to the point I am hoping to get across. Now, where was I? Oh yes."

Yang smiled, shifting in her seat. Something was afoot.

"Weapon-smithing as a subject of university level education is fairly new, only having been around in its most modern sense for the last forty years. Weapon-smithing as a profession is much older. For as long as there have been hunstmen, there have been their weapon smiths. For those of you not up to date on your military history, that places the profession at minimum two thousand years old. Now, while the standards of modern weapon-smithing are new, as I already mentioned, there are some traits that have stayed remarkably similar throughout all those centuries and millenia. The first and foremost is a smith's whole regard for their weapon. This can be seen in many ways. From something as small as a hidden etching, to as large as a style of sword. Yes, even the rapier itself was a calling card to one particular smith from three centuries ago, sharing that same last name. A small cardinal, hidden underneath a trigger mechanism for example, is a perfect representation of a calling-card used by weapon-smiths." Ozpin said, gesturing to the deconstructed weapon in front of him.

There were smirks around the room, from Cardin, still sitting in the witness's seat beside the judge's stand, to Cinder and the Schnee patriarch. The only one not smiling, instead with a grim frown, was Willow Schnee.

"Another, is something that the young Miss Rose had shared with me during our chat prior to accepting her into my school. Now," he turned to face the jury, hands clasped behind his back. "One thing that I have come to realize about weapon-smithing, having dabbled in the subject a little bit in my youth, is a common trait among each and every smith I have ever met. From the experts in the field with decades of practice, to those hobbyists who only build one weapon in their lifetime. It's that a weapon to a weapon-smith is like their child. They work hard on their craft, writing equations on corners of notebooks, drawing and redrawing their weapons on walls, or windows, or in their minds. Dozens, hundreds of times until they become more than memory. Their weapon, regardless of it being their first or fiftieth, are so ingrained in their minds, that they can assemble and reassemble it without much thought, exactly as they had first done so. So, to the lawyers on both sides, the judge and the esteemed jury, I place this before you. You have two who claim to have ownership of this weapon. And you have a disassembled weapon before you. What shall we make of this?"

This open-ended question seemed to bolster up something in Ruby's lawyer. He rose from his seat, placing both hands on the table for support. "I would like to put forward a contest of ability. Mister Winchester has spoken at length about the sword, Myrtenaster, to show that he has at least some understanding of it. Let us all bare witness to his true abilities in the reconstruction of Myrtenaster."

There were some nods from amongst the jury, murmurs running through the crowd watching. Some wondering if they would actually allow such a thing to happen in the court, the rest excited to see a master in action.

"H-hey, do we really want to waste the judge and jury's time watching me rebuild a lousy sword? Come on, I've made loads more and of better quality. It should be obvious by now that this thing is mine and not some little girl's. Just look at her, she's no weapon-smith! What company would even hire her!" Cardin effused.

But the murmurs from the crowd and jury were growing. Even as the Schnee lawyer was trying to repeat Cardin's words, there was talking over him.

"Do it Cardin!" Ruby shouted from her seat. "Try to rebuild her!"

"Miss Rose! If you speak up out of turn, I will have to throw you from this court. Is that understood?" The judge shouted over the growing volume of the masses.

"Fine! If the punk thinks I can't!" Cardin shouted back from the stands, to a loud shriek of, "don't you imbecile!" from Jacque Schnee himself.

"If the witness agrees, and it brings order to my courtroom, I will allow it," the judge finally breathed out, not at all happy with the arrangement, but thankful for the quiet.

Cardin swaggered down from his seat to the table in front of him. He clapped his hands, rubbing them together and looking at the many pieces before him. "Now, let's see. Where should I begin…"

Ruby smirked, grunting loudly and joyfully as he picked up a small metal cylinder from the pile, along with what Yang would only assume was an awkwardly bent screw. She watched in silent glee as he put down a piece, only to pick up another one, lost on what to do. This was it. Ruby would have her victory. They would win. Yang was now sure of it. Cardin had no idea what he was doing. They would win.

"Ah, now I remember. Sorry, I was slightly confused due to how similar this was to an older model of mine. Now, where were we…" Yang's smile dropped as Cardin began assembling pieces. It was a slow, harrowing process, but it was being done.

Cardin's attention flickered through the pieces; his eyebrows skewed in thought as he worked to put metal to metal as best as he could. Some pieces were raised, only to be lowered a second later, others, forced into spots, only to reassure the audience that a tight fit was important to the structure of the design. But it was being rebuilt.

Slowly but surely, it was being rebuilt.

"And that, my friends, is one completed rapier-revolver." He held the blade aloft, shifting it for all to see each and every angle of the completed blade.

"If that is all, then it can be concluded that the blade belongs to Mister Winchester If the jury can settle on a verdict that would be quite perf-"

"There's a missing piece," Ruby's lawyer pointed to the single piece sitting on the table. It was a small piece of metal. No longer than a thumb, with a hooked end and varying widths along most of it's length. He leaned down so that Ruby could whisper something into his ear.

"Partway through my rebuild, I realized a method to increase it's efficiency. As the good headmaster would no doubt agree with, any good weapon-smith will always seek to increase the efficiency of their designs."

"Mister Winchester is indeed correct," Ozpin affirmed.

"Then what does it do?"

"A-" Cardin paused, his smirk dropping as he was at a loss of what that awkwardly shaped piece of metal was used for. The weapon looked complete, perfect for all intents and purposes. There was nothing obvious as to what the piece could be used for.

"Ha! You don't know!" Ruby cheered in her chair.

"Then what's it for?" Cardin spat out, gasping as he brought hand to his mouth, trying to stop the words that were already let out.

Yang could feel Ruby's smile, even while only seeing the back of her head. "The revolving mechanism, obviously."

"That's most definitely wrong. Listen!" Cardin spun the revolver, enjoying listening to the sound of silence. "Not even a blip. That's a perfectly constructed revolving mechanism right there."

"Mister Winchester is correct," Cardin's lawyer said, bringing himself back into focus. "Professional weapon-smiths have always maintained to make their revolver mechanisms silent. It is common knowledge. And with the proper design, particularly, one stolen from Mister Winchester, anyone would be able to replicate it. If what Miss Rose is saying was true, then she would know what it would truly before for. Care to share?"

"The music system obviously," Ruby retorted.

"Music sys-?"

"Can I?" Ruby left the question in the air.

The judge, confused by the whole mess of a trial that was currently going on, sighed and gestured to the table, "feel free."

Yanking the weapon from Cardin's hand, Ruby laid it down gently on the table, running a delicate hand over it. "Okay, firstly, what did you do to my baby? This doesn't go here," Ruby ripped out a screw, flipping over the blade to yank out another piece. "And this doesn't go here. Seriously, thank everything that there's no dust in it, otherwise there'd have been an explosion. Trust me on that, You do not put a two and a half inch screw where a two inch screw should be, so close to the trigger, otherwise, it goes boom. I still have the scar to prove that."

Ruby hummed as she stripped apart the sword in only a few minutes, looking over each piece for minor damage or stress. With a sigh of relief, she began putting pieces back together. "I'd also like to clear up somethings, because nobody thought to ask me. Adding an etching to the inner part of a trigger to make it quieter? Ya, that's totally counter-intuitive. Just think about it for a moment. And duh? Oh, and Myrtenaster's name? I knew Myrtle was a flower, but aster meaning star? I had no idea. That… would have made a lot more sense. No, Myrtenaster is named after a flower, but it's supposed to be a joke about how Rose is also a flower. Myrtle, Rose, both flowers. And Aster… well, Weiss, I named it before I really knew you, so I'm really sorry, but…"

Ruby blushed as she continued to rebuild the weapon. Placing pieces together much more readily and rapidly than Cardin had just a moment prior. Yang looked around the room, enjoying seeing the faces of astonishment. Seeing the frowns on each of the faces of their assailants. Everyone but Mercury, who still seemed to be in his own world.

"It's supposed to be like butt-kicker. So, the sword is called Myrtenaster, like how it's me whooping your butt. Rose's butt-kicker. Sorry! I thought it would be funny at the time. And… there."

All the pieces were used.

In half the time.

"And now for the moment of truth!" Ruby shouted with excitement. She spun the revolver.

CLICK-CLACK-CLICK-CLACK-CLICK-CLACK

"That is no music," the judge said.

"It's supposed to sound like my music toy."

"If you have the toy as evidence for proof, then please present it. Otherwise, it sounds like nonsense."

"I-I don't have it. I-"

"It's right here!" Yang finally shouted, bouncing out from her seat. Finally glad to be able to involve herself in this whole affair.

"I-I… it's missing a piece. The music toy won't make a sound," Ruby said, her voice shallow. "I lost it when I did Weiss's contest."

"If there's no evidence, then unfortunately, there is no proof that the revolving mechanism should make any sound at all."

"Give us time to find the piece! It's back at the Schnee mansion!" Ruby shouted. "Give us time to find the piece!"

"Huh?" Mercury let out, looking around the room, wondering what was going on. "This piece?" He held up a small piece of metal between his fingers, completely lost as to the situation around him.

"Thank you-p!" Yang bounded from her seat, snatching the object from Mercury's grasp before Cinder or Emerald had a chance.

"That's it! That's what we've been looking for! My music-maker piece!"

The small metal piece, looking eerily similar to the larger one that Cardin had been unable to place into the revolving mechanism, fit perfectly into the wooden music toy that Yang had brought along with her.

Ruby gave it a gentle spin.

Click-clack.

It was quieter. Definitely fainter than the one inside Myrtenaster's metal revolver, but it was easy to spot the similarities. Though one was made of metal and the other wood, they both sounded alike. It was remarkable. Prodigious even.

Ozpin seemed to nod at the sound approvingly.

There was no mistake. The sword was Ruby's through and through. And with that, the entire trial seemed to unravel. If the sword that was Ruby's in the first place was claimed to be stolen by someone else, what else could have claimed to be stolen by her that would turn out to be false? In a matter of minutes, it all fell apart. The double pounding of a gavel of wood signified the end to a long and harrowing trial. Ruby was free to go.

She was innocent.

They had won.

Weiss rushed to the front of the room, quickly enveloping Ruby in a tight hug. The two of them cheered, Ruby giggled. They shared a kiss for everyone to see.

"Now that that rubbish is over," Weiss chimed in, "I'd like everyone in the room, including the press in the back that my parents so happily brought it, that this here is Ruby Rose. She's my girlfriend and also the winner of my contest."

As everyone was let out from the courtroom into the halls, there were smiles all around. Pictures were taken, reporters gave their words to the cameras. All the while, Jacque and Willow Schnee fumed silently in the background, not giving a comment to any of the many who asked of them.

"Cinder!" Yang called out. The landlady spun to face her tenant. Yang was holding up a piece of paper. One that looked familiar to her. Her eyes widened.

"The judge allowed me to take a look at a bit of evidence provided to the court. It's my home's official lease and tenant agreement. The one my parents signed. I found something in it that I think you'll enjoy. A little bit right down here about buying the property outright from the landlord. You'll be seeing the first payment towards that coming in tomorrow."

"Why not have it all?" Weiss mused, stepping beside the taller blonde. "You'll be getting a check from me in a few hours. It's the least I can do for my friends to get you out of their lives."

Cinder growled, "this won't be the last you see of me, Miss Xiao Long."

"Oh I think it will be," Yang smiled devilishly, before reverting to a sultry voice. "Now, why don't you be a dear and never step foot on my property ever again?"

Cinder turned to Mercury, an angry finger pointed to his chest. He raised his hands, "oh, I already know that I'm completely being fired for this."

Emerald hit him hard, "you think?"

* * *

Outside the courthouse, it was sunny. Ozpin had just finished congratulating Ruby on fulfilling the requirements to be accepted into Beacon University with full scholarships, welcoming her to the school and hoping to see her around campus in the coming fall semester.

Ruby rushed down the stairs towards Yang, Blake and Weiss, throwing her arms around all of them, bringing them into a group hug, giggles and all. Holding tight to the waist of her girlfriend and sister, they all continued down the steps together.

"So, what are we going to do with our free time now that all the drama is over? No crazy parents to work around or landlords to escape from?" Blake asked with a smile, causing everyone to erupt into laughter.

It was great to finally laugh again.

"What are you two going to do?" Yang asked, turning to her sister and Weiss. "Still going to separate schools next year? Hoping for that happily ever after?"

They both nodded.

"I'm still going to Atlas University, while Ruby is going to Beacon U," Weiss said with a light smile. "Different schools will definitely make it harder. As for happily ever after, we did only just start to date after all. We're going to try long distance which is going to make it harder as well."

Ruby nodded once more in agreement, tightening her hold on Weiss's waist. Weiss smiled at the added contact.

"There's still your parents to deal with," Yang remarked, to which Blake gave a slight nod.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "I've always had to deal with them. At least now I have a real win under my belt. It can only get easier from here."

"And you have me to help whenever you need it!" Ruby piped up, causing a light blush to descend on Weiss's smiling face.

"We both know that we're going to get into fights and stumble along the way, but for right now I know at least one thing." Weiss wrapped her arm around Ruby, letting Ruby nuzzle her cheek into Weiss's shoulder. "We'll live happily."

And they did.

* * *

**THE END**


End file.
